An Uzbek boxer was stripped of his Asian Championship gold medal for biting his opponent.

At the Asian Boxing Championship, the athlete from Uzbekistan, Khavasbek Asadullayev, won a gold medal in the 71 kg weight category. However, two days later, he was disqualified for a violation.

In the final match, Khavasbek Asadullayev faced off against his opponent from Kazakhstan, Ablaykhan Zhusupov. The judges awarded the victory to Asadullayev by split decision. It later emerged that the Uzbek athlete bit his opponent on the shoulder, an incident that went unnoticed by the referee during the fight.

Following a protest from the Kazakhstan Boxing Federation, the technical delegate of the Asian Boxing Championship for elites (ASBC), Saidi Duffy from Ireland, made the decision to disqualify boxer Khavasbek Asadullayev for a serious infraction.

“This violation, classified under rule 21.1.8 of the Terms and Conditions as biting an opponent, was missed by the referee during the bout, but was later established. According to the rules, if a boxer is disqualified for any reason, Ablaykhan Zhusupov is declared the winner of the match,” the ASBC statement reads.