Slovenia's Ema Kozin was crowned unified light-middleweight champion of the World Boxing Council (WBC) and the World Boxing Organization in Manchester Saturday night after defeating Scot Hannah Rankin.
The Slovenian boxer won 2:1. The fight opened the door to the biggest success of women's boxing in Scotland and Slovenia, and Ema Kozin was the better of the two, reaching a new milestone in the history of this martial art in Slovenia. It should not be overlooked that the competition was organised by Frank Warren's Queensberry Promotions, one of the most established groups in the sport and a platform for the next big competition.
In an evenly contested fight, the Scottish woman was the better fighter in the first round, dominating the middle of the ring, but the Ljubljana woman took the initiative in the very next round. A few strong punches on both competitors left no consequences.
In the duel between the two experienced competitors, only a few punches hit the target accurately. Both were careful to keep their distance, which prevented their rivals from asserting their advantage. It was nice to see in the fifth round, however, when the Slovenian boxer pressed Shot against the ring ropes with a series of punches.
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Before Ema Kozin, the only Slovenian boxer to win a world title was Dejan Zavec, who defeated Isaac Hlatshwaya in South Africa in 2009 to become IBF world champion. Photo: Nebojša Tejić/STA
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"In the second half I knew that most of the rounds were mine, but of course I had to make sure Hannah didn't surprise me until the end," Kozin said after the match. Photo: Nebojša Tejić/STA
Mission impossible, but still possible
Manager Rudi Pavlin was also very satisfied: "It was a very tough fight, as we expected. Ema impressed, showed a lot of progress and also potential for the future. We have proved that mission impossible is possible. Thank you to everyone who worked with us."
On the recipe for victory: "Ema stuck to her tactics. She launched a lot of punches to the body from a distance and to the head in the 'clinch'. Otherwise, she kept her distance and prevented her opponent from attacking. After the match, it was obvious that the tactics worked, as Hana was much more composed," added Pavlin, who admitted that preparations for the next match will be a bit easier financially after today's victory. We got here by working hard and believing in success all the time."
Ema Kozin has 24 wins and one draw in her professional career, and the only woman to beat her is American women's boxing legend Clarissa Shields.
Source: STA
Date: 20. November 2023
Time to read: 2 min
