Pan American Boxing: Cuban Julio César La Cruz debuts with a victory

This Friday, Cuban boxer Julio César La Cruz defeated American Jamar Talley by a unanimous decision at the 2023 Pan American Games, in a bout that was part of the round of sixteen in the +92-kilogram category. The fight took place at the Olympic Training Center in Ñuñoa.

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Santiago 2023: "La Sombra" succeeds at the Pan American Games

The Caribbean athlete, also known as "La Sombra", arrived at Santiago 2023 with possibly the most impressive track record of all the athletes present, including two Olympic gold medals and three Pan American gold medals.

The bout was quite close at the beginning, as in the first round, three out of the five judges declared Talley the winner. However, in the final two rounds, all judges awarded the victory to La Cruz, allowing him to secure a unanimous decision in the final tally.

His next opponent in the semifinals will be Chilean Andrews Salgado, who had a bye in the round of sixteen.

Pan American boxing: today's winners

Today's boxing session also concluded with two bouts in the 92-kilogram category: Colombian Marlon Hurtado won by unanimous decision against Dominican Daniel Guzmán, while Yakita Aska from Antigua and Barbuda also won by points but in a split decision (4-1) against Guyana's Emmanuel Pompey.

It's worth noting that Pan American boxing provides 30 slots for the 2024 Paris Olympics: the top two in each category, with the additional provision that the semifinalists in the 57-kilogram and 60-kilogram female's categories will also qualify.