Pugilist rings the changes with Chinese boxing gold

Tuohetaerbieke Tanglatihan, a 26-year-old boxer from northwestern China's Xinjiang Uygur autonomous region, reignited the nation's boxing hopes at the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou.

With a come-from-behind win over Filipino boxer Eumir Felix Marcial via unanimous decision, Tuohetaerbieke claimed the 71-80kg men's gold medal at Hangzhou Gymnasium on Thursday.

The win made him the first male boxing champion from China at the Asian Games since super-heavyweight Zhang Zhilei took home the gold at Guangzhou 2010. Moreover, the gold has also secured his qualification for next summer's Paris Olympics.

Marcial, a bronze medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, came into Thursday's final in blistering form, producing two straight knockout victories in the lead-up to the goldmedal bout.

It made Tuohetaerbieke's comeback victory over the Filipino veteran all the more impressive.

"I am very excited, because (in Indonesia in 2018), I only managed fifth place" said Tuohetaerbieke after winning the gold.

"This time my mood was really different. I can see my improvement and my hard work in my results. I also earned qualification to the Olympics and I'm really happy about that," he added.

Chinese men's boxing has been waiting a long time for a champion, with the past decade yielding very little success in the ring.

With the Paris Olympics now within reach, Tuohetaerbieke is determined to further demonstrate Chinese boxing's power on the global stage.

"I will train and work well with my coach to be a better version of myself for Paris," he said.