Boxers Caitlin Parker and Charlie Senior are Olympic quarter-finalists after winning their opening round bouts at the North Paris Arena.
Caitlin controlled her 75kg preliminary round of 16 bout against Mexican Citlalli Vanessa Ortiz to reach the quarter-finals at the Olympics for the first time.
The world championship silver medallist looked confident across all three rounds, dictating the fight from the beginning to claim the win.
The win made Caitlin hungrier for her goal of a first Olympic medal; the first ever for Australia in women’s Boxing.
“This is the biggest event of my entire life, even bigger than Tokyo,” she said.
“I didn't get what I wanted there, so I’m hungrier than ever, smarter than ever, stronger than ever, faster than ever.
“I can't wait to show that.”
Her win was only the second by an Australian female boxer at the Olympic Games, joining Skye Nicolson from Tokyo 2020 in the 57kg division as an Olympic quarter-finalist
Caitlin will face Moroccan Khadija Mardi on Sunday with the winner guaranteed of at least a bronze medal.
In the men’s 57kg, Charlie looked confident across all three rounds, defeating Belgian Vasile Usturoi.
After a tense opening round, the 22-year-old hit his stride in the second and third, winning the bout four to one on points.
The Perth boxer celebrated his win with a spectacular backflip, impressing the vocal contingent of Aussie supporters even further.
Charlie couldn’t be happier with his performance.
“I perform under pressure and that's why I'm here,” Charlie said.
“I didn't come in here looking for any easy fights.
“I fought the best and mixed it with the best so therefore I am up there with the best.”
Charlie now faces Carlo Paalam from the Philippines in the quarter-final on Saturday.
Earlier in the day, Shannan Davey took to the ring in the men’s 71kg preliminary round of 16 against Bulgarian Rami Mofid Kiwan.
The 24-year-old battled hard in the opening round in a tense three minutes, with the judges awarding the first round to the Bulgarian.
Shannan came out hard in the opening minute of the second round to force his opponent into strong defence, before Kiwan took control of the bout to claim the final two rounds and the match.
Despite the result, Shannan relished his Olympic experience and getting to box in front of his family.
“The atmosphere is amazing and having all the Aussies here is very inspiring,” he said. “It gave me a lot of motivation.
“It was my parents' first time coming overseas as well so it was a special moment for us.
“I'm so gutted not to win but I know they're proud of me no matter what, win, lose or draw.”
The next Aussie boxers to take to the ring will be Monique Suraci in the women’s 50kg division and Marissa Williamson in the 66kg division.
This article was originally written for The Australian Olympic Team. You can read the published version here
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