Dominican Republic's Euri Cedeno Martinez defeats Olympics opponent in 67 seconds
Boxer moved on to second round in middleweight tournament in Tokyo
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}The Dominican Republic’s Euri Cedeno Martinez didn’t need much time to get through Eldric Sella Rodriguez, of the Refugee Olympic Team, in their boxing matchup Monday at the Tokyo Olympics.
Cedeno Martinez beat Sella Rodriguez in 67 seconds to secure the victory in the middleweight contest. The referee stopped the count after Cedeno Martinez made Sella Rodriguez fall to the mat and then hit him with a brutal combination for the second time in just over a minute, according to Reuters.
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{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Cedeno moved on to face Francisco Veron of Argentina in the Round of 16.
The 21-year-old Dominican Republic boxer had a solid 2019 ahead of his journey to the Olympics.
He won the Copa Romana in 2019, finished fifth in the Pan American Games and finished ninth in the World Championships. It was his second consecutive Copa Romana win, having won in 2018. He had finished in ninth place in the World Youth Championships in 2016.
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According to Olympics.com, Cedeno Martinez wanted to play baseball but couldn’t afford the equipment. His father was also a boxing coach which, helped him stray toward boxing and away from baseball.
His brother, Hendri, competed for the Dominican Republic in the 2109 Pan American Games.
{{#rendered}} {{/rendered}}Cedeno Martinez will be looking for his first medal.
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Cuba’s Arlen Lopez won gold in the middleweight category in the 2016 Rio Olympics. He defeated Uzbekistan’s Bektemir Melikuziev. Mexico’s Misael Rodriguez won bronze.