“Victory Stolen“: Kazakhstan Boxing Federation filed a protest at the Asian Games

Photo: Kazakhstan Boxing Federation

Tengrinews.kz — The Kazakhstan Boxing Federation (KBF) has disputed the judges' scoring in the Asian Games semifinal bouts involving Natalya Bogdanova and Makhmud Sabyrkhan.

In the Asian Games semifinals, Kazakhstani world champions Natalya Bogdanova and Makhmud Sabyrkhan were handed losses by the judges against India's Lovlina Borgohain and the Philippines' Carlo Paalam, respectively.

Representatives of the Kazakhstan Boxing Federation intend to file an official protest.

"We have filed a protest as we disagree with the decision. Bogdanova won decisively, as did Makhmud. We have expressed our disagreement with the judging to both the Asian Boxing Confederation and World Boxing. We do not accept the verdict; to put it bluntly, the victory was stolen," Rauan Igenev, Executive Director of the KBF, told Tengri Sport.

The Federation also clarified why Sabyrkhan's bout resulted in a 3:2 final score despite a 2:2 split in the initial judging.

Photo: aichi-nagoya2026.org

"When three judges rule against a fighter even across two rounds, the outcome of the fight is already decided, regardless of any points being deducted," he noted.

However, the Federation noted that according to the boxing tournament regulations, results are not subject to review. The protest serves a procedural purpose and may be significant regarding the assignment of specific referees for future bouts involving Kazakhstani athletes.

It is worth noting that out of 11 Kazakhstani representatives at the 2026 Asian Games boxing tournament, two reached the finals: Aibek Oralbay and Torekhan Sabyrkhan.