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Associated Press
Aug 21 2004
Iraq's Only Boxer Falls in Second Round
GREG BEACHAM
Associated Press
ATHENS, Greece - Najah Ali, who gained renown as the flag-carrier for
Iraq's reconstituted Olympic team and as the games' smallest boxer,
lost his second-round light flyweight bout on Saturday to Armenia's
Leeks' Nalbandyan.
Though Ali was outpointed 24-11, he still provided a dramatic
conclusion to his 10-month journey from a job in a Baghdad furniture
factory to the bright lights of Athens. After falling behind
irretrievably on points, the 4-foot-11 fighter cut Nalbandyan's mouth
and spent the final round frantically attempting to open the cut wide
enough to get the Armenian fighter disqualified.
"I only needed one punch - one punch," Ali said with a shake of his
head.
The crowd embraced the 106-pound fighter's final-round effort,
chanting "Ali! Ali!" in the fourth round. When the fight ended, the
disconsolate boxer was lifted off the mat in a bear hug by Maurice
"Termite" Watkins, his American coach.
"He fought a fantastic fight," Watkins said. "We did this in 10
months, and they've all been getting ready for this for four years. I
think of him like my son. I love him very much."
Last Wednesday, Ali surprised nearly everyone at Peristeri Olympic
Boxing Hall with a 21-7 victory over North Korea's Kwak Hyok Ju.
After the fight, Ali proclaimed himself "a symbol for freedom."
That attitude was reflected in the slogan Watkins chose for the back
of Ali's uniform: Iraq Is Back. The Iraqi Olympic Committee was
reinstated by the IOC in February after a nine-month ban due to its
being led by Saddam Hussein's son Uday, who tortured athletes failing
to reach his standards.
"I don't care about political things," Ali said. "I'm just a fighter.
I do my sport. ... (But) it was very hard to forget everything,
especially the situation in Iraq."
Watkins went to Iraq last year to perform pest control for the U.S.
Army. He wound up coaching the Iraqi boxing team, eventually choosing
the 24-year-old Ali to accept a special invitation to the Athens
Games.
Ali spent six weeks training with the U.S. team in Colorado earlier
this year, also making stops in Houston and in Marquette, Mich.. U.S.
coach Basheer Abdullah joined Watkins in Ali's corner for both
fights.
Ali now is setting his sights on the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
"But first, we're going to get some ice cream," Watkins said. "The
only thing that's going to hurt tonight is his stomach. I wouldn't
let him eat it before. ... I'm pretty tough. I'm not quite as tough
as Uday, but I'll cut the ice cream off."
Aug 21 2004
Iraq's Only Boxer Falls in Second Round
GREG BEACHAM
Associated Press
ATHENS, Greece - Najah Ali, who gained renown as the flag-carrier for
Iraq's reconstituted Olympic team and as the games' smallest boxer,
lost his second-round light flyweight bout on Saturday to Armenia's
Leeks' Nalbandyan.
Though Ali was outpointed 24-11, he still provided a dramatic
conclusion to his 10-month journey from a job in a Baghdad furniture
factory to the bright lights of Athens. After falling behind
irretrievably on points, the 4-foot-11 fighter cut Nalbandyan's mouth
and spent the final round frantically attempting to open the cut wide
enough to get the Armenian fighter disqualified.
"I only needed one punch - one punch," Ali said with a shake of his
head.
The crowd embraced the 106-pound fighter's final-round effort,
chanting "Ali! Ali!" in the fourth round. When the fight ended, the
disconsolate boxer was lifted off the mat in a bear hug by Maurice
"Termite" Watkins, his American coach.
"He fought a fantastic fight," Watkins said. "We did this in 10
months, and they've all been getting ready for this for four years. I
think of him like my son. I love him very much."
Last Wednesday, Ali surprised nearly everyone at Peristeri Olympic
Boxing Hall with a 21-7 victory over North Korea's Kwak Hyok Ju.
After the fight, Ali proclaimed himself "a symbol for freedom."
That attitude was reflected in the slogan Watkins chose for the back
of Ali's uniform: Iraq Is Back. The Iraqi Olympic Committee was
reinstated by the IOC in February after a nine-month ban due to its
being led by Saddam Hussein's son Uday, who tortured athletes failing
to reach his standards.
"I don't care about political things," Ali said. "I'm just a fighter.
I do my sport. ... (But) it was very hard to forget everything,
especially the situation in Iraq."
Watkins went to Iraq last year to perform pest control for the U.S.
Army. He wound up coaching the Iraqi boxing team, eventually choosing
the 24-year-old Ali to accept a special invitation to the Athens
Games.
Ali spent six weeks training with the U.S. team in Colorado earlier
this year, also making stops in Houston and in Marquette, Mich.. U.S.
coach Basheer Abdullah joined Watkins in Ali's corner for both
fights.
Ali now is setting his sights on the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.
"But first, we're going to get some ice cream," Watkins said. "The
only thing that's going to hurt tonight is his stomach. I wouldn't
let him eat it before. ... I'm pretty tough. I'm not quite as tough
as Uday, but I'll cut the ice cream off."