Bonsfield beats Stefanidis in 91kg final in Cyprus

Malta boxer Uan Bonsfield left a very good impression at the international boxing tournament in Limassol, Cyprus, last weekend after claiming the honours in the 91kg class.

Bonsfield, along with Keith Azzopardi, Bernard Micallef, Daniel Micallef and Yousef Shah, represented the Malta Boxing Federation in the multi-category event which attracted other boxers from the host nation, Greece, Serbia, Russia, England and Corfu.

In the 91kg class, Bonsfield was drawn against boxers from Cyprus and Greece.

He won his encounter with Yiannis Niclaou 3-0, lost his bout with Thoma Andreas, of Cyprus, on a split decision but regrouped for the final to beat Christos Stefanidis, of Greece, 3-0.

In the juniors division, Azzopardi also left his mark even though he lost his match with Alex Vasiliou on a split decision.

During this bout, the crowd grew tense with anticipation up to the last moments as both boxers were evenly matched.

In a statement, the federation said the other boxers in the team did not win any bouts but gave a very good account of themselves as all their matches went the distance and none of them was outclassed.

Many of the participating team delegates and coaches were surprised with the performance level of the Maltese team, the statement added, and some also showed an interest in inviting the Maltese to similar international tournaments which they will host in future.

The federation also reminded clubs that affiliation for the 2008/09 amateur season are now open.