体坛英语新闻：American boxers conclude quarterfinal qualifying fights for Rio Olympics

BUENOS AIRES, March 16 (Xinhua) -- American boxers have concluded their quarterfinal qualifying fights here on Wednesday, closing to get their tickets towards the Rio Olympic Games.

Of the total 24 fights in the quarterfinals, six categories of 49, 52, 60, 64, 69 and 81 kilograms were competed by the men boxers on Wednesday, with the semifinals slated for Thursday.

As one of the most awaited fights, Colombia's Yuberjen Martinez, runner-up at Veracruz 2014 Central American Games, lost to Ecuador's Carlos Quipo in the 49kg category.

Another big fight involved Colombian Ceiber Avila, silver medal-winner at both Toronto 2015 Pan-American Games and Veracruz 2015 Central American Games, who defeated Guatemala's Eddy Valenzuela in 52kg category.

Also in the 49kg category, Leonel de los Santos of the Dominican Republic, winner in Veracruz 2014, beat 20-year-old Toronto 2015 winner Yoel Finol from Venezuela on points.

In the 64kg category, Canadian Arthur Biyarslanov, winner at Toronto 2015, defeated Danielito Zorrilla of Puerto Rico, who has a long history in World Series of Boxing.

Organized and endorsed by the International Boxing Association (AIBA), the tournament has brought a record number of 241 boxers from 34 countries in the continent.

Apart from the tournament in Argentina, there are still two more Olympic qualifiers for men, one from the World Series Boxing (WSB) and the AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) in Sofia, Bulgaria between May 13 and 22, and the other in Baku, Azerbaijan between June 7 and 19.