Featherweight preview: Team GB star can use height and reach to win gold
- Joe Hewlett
- 23 July 2021
“There’s no chance they can beat me if I’m on my A game. The pressure I apply, I believe I hit rather hard for a 57 kilo girl."
Top seed: Lin Yu-Ting
The Taiwanese fighter won a gold medal at the 2018 World Championships and followed it with a bronze medal in 2019 at featherweight.
Seeded as number one, she will get a bye into the last-16.
Most talked about: Karriss Artingstall
In the 57kg category, Kariss Artingstall has the ability to win gold for Team GB.
With similar attributes to what Mikaela Mayer showcased at the 2016 Olympics, we expect Artingstall to take advantage of her height and reach.
She is the military's first female fighter to represent her nation at the Olympics.
"I like to apply pressure and make them feel my pressure," Artingstall told Boxing News.
"There's no chance they can beat me if I'm on my A game. The pressure I apply, I believe I hit rather hard for a 57 kilo girl.
"My hands are fast, my feet are fast, if I'm just on it, I'm going to be unbelievably hard to beat and I truly believe that."
One to watch: Nesthy Petecio
It is second time lucky for Nesthy Petecio. The Filipina boxer failed to qualify for Tokyo on the first time of asking following a shock quarter-final defeat in the Asia and Oceania Olympic Boxing Qualifiers in Jordan last year.
Despite being eliminated, Petecio made it to the Olympics via her high world ranking of number two after the World Olympic Qualifying tournament was scrapped because of Covid-19.
She is a tough customer for any opponent on her day and has the power to take her all the way.
Petecio won gold at the 2019 World Championships as well as winning the Southeast Asia Games in the same year.
