Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 Day 1 Preview
by USA Boxing
With the brackets set for the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020, it is time to take a closer look at the first day of competition for Team USA.
USA Boxing will have three boxers’ step into the ring, Delante Johnson (Cleveland, Ohio), Duke Ragan (Cincinnati, Ohio) and Yarisel Ramirez (Las Vegas, Nev.). Ragan and Ramirez will compete in the first session of the day, while Johnson will compete in session two.
Yarisel Ramirez vs. Nikolina Cacic/CRO
Ramirez will be the first American to compete in these Olympic Games in the second bout of the first session. The 2019 Pan American Games bronze medalist will go head-to-head against Croatia’s Nikolina Cacic, the 23rd ranked boxer in the Boxing Task Force (BTF) rankings. Cacic finished second at the European Qualifier last month, as well as second at the 2018 Youth World Championships.
Duke Ragan vs. Samuel Kistohurry/FRA
Ragan, a 4-0 professional, will make his return to amateur-style boxing against France’s Samuel Kistohurry in the seventh bout of the competition. Ragan, who earned his place in Tokyo due to his standings in the BTF rankings, faces a tough competitor with a great deal of international experience. Kistohurry finished third at the European Qualifier and is ranked sixth on the BTF rankings, as well as holds a 3-0 professional record.
Delante Johnson vs. Brian Agustin Arregui/ARG
Johnson will make his Olympic debut during the 11th bout of the second session against Argentina’s Brian Agustin Arregui. Johnson, who is ranked 23rd in the BTF rankings, will look to get his Olympics off to a strong start against Arregui, who is the 2018 Youth Olympic Games Champion and 2-0 professional. Arregui, who ranks 71st in the BTF rankings, also brings youth and elite world championship experience to the ring, having finished 5th at the 2018 Youth World Championships and 17th at the 2019 Elite World Championships.
Competition for the first session will begin at 11:00 a.m. JST/10:00 p.m. EST, while the second session will start at 5:00 p.m. JST/4:00 a.m. EST. Livestream information, along with results, news and other updates from Tokyo, can be found here.