HONG KONG: Two-time Olympic champion Zou Shiming says that he is aiming for the top, ahead of his professional debut next month, as he bids to become China’s first boxer to make it big on the world stage.
The nimble Zou, light flyweight gold medallist at the 2008 and 2012 Olympic Games, begins his quest for world domination in Macau on April 6 against the little-known Mexican Eleazar Valenzuela.
Zou, a three-time amateur world champion, is well known in his homeland, where boxing was banned under Mao Zedong. Now he hopes to extend his reputation to a global audience and put China on the map as a force in the sport.
“It’s always been a dream of mine to become a professional boxer, now that I have this opportunity, I want to see if I can become a world champion, that is the goal that I hope to achieve,” he said. Zou has signed with Bob Arum’s Las Vegas-based Top Rank promotions and been training under the celebrated Freddie Roach. Roach has drawn comparisons between Zou and another brilliant Asian, the Filipino Manny Pacquiao.
“Freddie has been incredible, he has made the transition from amateur to professional very easy and I love working with him,” Zou said. AFP
