Galal Yafai wins Team GB’s first boxing gold medal of the Tokyo Olympics as he defeats Filipino Carlo Paalam in a brutal, all-action fight after dropping his opponent in the first round
- Galal Yafai put on a boxing masterclass to win the flyweight gold medal
- The Brit floored his opponent Carlo Paalam with a brutal combination in the first
- Paalam got back into the contest but the classier work was coming from Yafai
- Yafai got the nod on split decision to claim Britain’s first boxing gold in Tokyo
Galal Yafai was crowned Olympic champion on Saturday after a frantic and brilliant fight for flyweight gold against Carlo Paalam.
Yafai dropped the Filipino with a big left in the first round and edged the second before losing the third, ultimately taking the title by a 4-1 split decision.
It was Team GB’s 19th gold medal at these Games and the fifth of any colour for Rob McCracken’s boxing programme. Lauren Price will add either a silver or gold in her middleweight final on Sunday.
Galal Yafai put in an exceptional performance to become the flyweight Olympic champion
The Brit landed a brutal combination in the first round to drop Filipino Carlo Paalam
The fight capped a superb tournament for Yafai, whose brothers Kal and Gamal have won world and European titles respectively in the professional ranks.
In a bout fought at a furious pace, Yafai started on the front foot and took control with a heavy left and following right that dropped Paalam. Paalam responded well and appeared to be shading the second until Yafai turned the session late in the round.
Paalam searched for the knockdown in the last but aside from one big right to the jaw at the bell failed to cause damage.
It was a brutal, all-action fight, but Yafai was given the nod a split-decision verdict
Yafai collapsed to his knees as he celebrated being crowned the Olympic champion