Im Ae-ji of South Korea (left) celebrates after beating Yeni Arias of Colombia in the quarterfinals of the women's 54kg boxing event at the Paris Olympics at North Paris Arena in Paris on Thursday. - Photo: Yonhap
PARIS: Im Ae-ji has secured South Korea's first Olympic boxing medal in 12 years.
Im defeated Yeni Arias of Colombia in a 3-2 decision in the quarterfinals of the women's 54-kilogram boxing event at the Paris Olympics on Thursday (Aug 1) at North Paris Arena.
By advancing to the semifinals, Im has assured herself of at least a bronze medal.
There will be no third-place bout in boxing, and the two losers of the semifinals will each receive a bronze medal.
It will be South Korea's first boxing medal in 12 years, and its first medal in women's boxing.
Im will face Hatice Akbas of Turkiye in the semifinals on Sunday at Stade Roland Garros in the French capital.
Arias came out all guns blazing in the first round, but Im ended up winning it with some deft footwork, as three of the five judges gave her the edge.
Im won Round 2 as well and landed enough blows while keeping her opponent at bay in the final round.
Im said she tried not to think too much about securing a medal during the match.
"I had so much that I would win a medal with just one more victory.
"But I figured I wouldn't perform well if I got caught up in that thought," Im said.
"I tried to look at this as just another match. I was just trying to beat my opponent and not worry about the medal."
The other semifinal match will pit Pang Chol-mi of North Korea against Chang Yuan of China.
When told she could meet a North Korean fighter in the final, Im declared, "I will win that match." - Yonhap
