Cameroonian boxer wins rookie contest
Cameroonian refugee boxer Kil Tae-san pose during the rookie boxing contest held at the Grand Hilton Hotel in Seoul on May 27. / Courtesy of Boxing Management Korea
By Kim Jae-heun
Jean Durandal Etobil Etobil, better known as Kil Tae-san in Korea, won the rookie boxing contest at the Grand Hilton Seoul, May 27.
Kil, 31, defeated Korean boxer Lee Gyu-hyun in the first round by a TKO referee stop.
He threw a right hook that knocked Lee down. Kil now has four wins and no losses in the super-middleweight division here
The 31-year old refugee boxer was born in Cameroon.
He joined the national boxing team there and came to Korea to participate in the International Military Sports Council World Games in Mungyeong, North Gyeongsang Province in October 2015.
Kil and his teammate Abdoulaye Assan, known as Lee Heuk-san here, ran away from from the team during the event.
The two boxers claimed they were physically abused and suffered other forms of persecution.
For the past two years, Kil and Assan have tried to seek refugee status in Korea. However, they were rejected at their initial screening the very first year.
The two submitted a petition against the Ministry of Justice's decision, and finally won refugee status last year, in November and August, respectively.
Meanwhile, the two Cameroonian boxers made their debut at different gyms after moving to Cheonan in South Chungcheong Province.
Assan rose to the champion position first in the super welterweight division in Boxing Management Korea last May.
It took little longer for Kil to gain attention in Korean boxing.
“Although Assan became the Korean champion first, people in the boxing scene say Kil is a better fighter. He is said to be more skillful and powerful. He has, so far, beat half of his opponents by knockeouts. Most importantly, Kil is four years younger than Assan,” said Won Woo-min, the World Boxing Association's Asia Super Lightweight Champion.
Kil said his goal is to become a world champion in three years.