Belarus was represented by Andrey Kulebin — the multi-time European and world champion among amateurs and professionals. He showed his usual skill, defeating Loris Audoui of South America and Africa’s Ibrahim Konate on the way to the finals. In the tough final match, he also crushed European Ruslan Kushnirenko.
A spectacular WKN performance was organised, allowing Kick Fighter Club trainees to prove their worth. In the weight category under 54.9kg, Belarusian Andrey Zayats and Ukrainian Alexey Yanin boxed for five rounds, with Andrey winning. Dmitry Valent (76.2kg) faced Samir Durid for four rounds; then a towel was thrown indicating that the French capitulated.
Among the women, Yekaterina Vandarieva defeated Polish Joanna Jedrzejczyk (Dutch school) although the judging seemed dubious. Next year, the BIG-8 is likely to be hosted by a European capital.
