(COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO.) – Light welterweight Frankie Gomez (Broadway, Calif.) took the ring at the 2009 World Championships with the weight of his country on his shoulders as one of only two U.S. boxers remaining in contention at the 2009 World Championships. Yet the 17-year-old didn’t crumble under the pressure, winning his third straight bout in Milan to move on to quarterfinal action.
Gomez faced Uzbekistan’s Sanjarbek Rahmanov in third round action on Tuesday afternoon at the Mediolanum Forum, winning a 19-10 decision, to advance in the tournament. Once again, Gomez fell behind by a slim 6-5 margin after one round of action. Yet the American came out strong in the second round, grabbing the momentum and outscoring Rahmanov by an 8-3 margin over the middle three minutes of boxing. He held an 11-8 lead as the bout moved into the final round, and Gomez put a definitive stamp on his win over the last three minutes. The 17-year-old American held Rahmanov to only one point on his way to the 19-10 final victory.
Featherweight Kevin Rivers (Landover, Md.) lost his third round contest to reigning bantamweight champion Sergey Vodopiyanov of Russia,13-1, to eliminate him from contention. Rivers recorded two victories before his third round loss in Milan.
Gomez will return to action on Wednesday, facing Egidijus Kavaliauskas of Lithuania at 8:30 p.m. Milan time (2:30 p.m. EST) with a spot in the medal round on the line.
For the most up-to-date results and information as well as full draw sheets for all 11 weight divisions, go to www.aiba.org
Tuesday’s U.S. Results
125 lbs: Sergey Vodopiyanov, RUS, dec. Kevin Rivers, Landover, Md./USA, 13-1
141 lbs: Frankie Gomez, Broadway, Calif./USA dec. Sanjarbek Rahmov, UZB, 19-10
Wednesday’s Schedule
141 lbs: Frankie Gomez, Broadway, Calif./USA vs. Egidijus Kavaliauskas, LTU
