Azerbaijan's national boxing team won a total of 12 medals at Olympic Hopes Boxing Tournament held in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina, across the U-17 and U-19 categories, AzerNEWS reports.

The team competed with 13 athletes in two age groups and achieved strong results in both divisions.

In the U-19 category, Ali Aliyev (50 kg), Nihat Gasimov (55 kg), Ali Bakhishov (60 kg), and Saftar Mammadzade (+90 kg) all won gold medals.

Gulnar Huseynova (54 kg) secured silver, while Shahin Aslanov (65 kg) and Rza Rzayev (70 kg) took bronze.

In the U-17 category, Aysel Farajova (48 kg), Sama Abbasova (66 kg), and Khumar Jafarli (80 kg) claimed gold medals. Aydan Ismayilli (48 kg) and Fatima Mammadli (50 kg) earned silver medals.

The three-day event saw Azerbaijani boxers compete in two age categories. In the U-19 division, Ali Aliyev (50 kg), Nihat Gasimov (55 kg), Ali Bakhishov (60 kg), Shahin Aslanov (65 kg), Rza Rzayev (70 kg), Saftar Mammadzade (+90 kg), and Gular Huseynova (51 kg) represented the country.

In the U-17 category, Aysel Farajova (46 kg), Aydan Ismayilli (48 kg), Fatima Mammadli (50 kg), Jamila Muradli (57 kg), Sama Abbasova (66 kg), and Khumar Jafarli (80 kg) took part in the competition.

The men's team was led by head coach Elbrus Rzayev, while the women's squad was coached by Ilkin Aghayev.

Boxing is known as one of the oldest sports in the history of humankind.

The earliest evidence of boxing dates back to Egypt around 3,000 BC.

This sport was introduced to the ancient Olympic Games by the Greeks in the late 7th century BC.

In 1924, the International Amateur Boxing Federation (FIBA) was established.

Since 1946, it has been referred to as the International Boxing Association (AIBA). Boxing made its Olympic debut at the 1904 Games in St. Louis.

In 1926, the boxing championship was held for the first time in Azerbaijan, where national boxers took first place.

Since 1992, the Azerbaijani Boxing Federation has become a full member of the International Boxing Association (AIBA).

Azerbaijani boxers have won many prestigious awards at many international championships.

Aghasi Mammadov has entered Azerbaijan's history of boxing as the first national boxer, as a gold medallist at the world championship.

Another Azerbaijani boxer, Fuad Asadov, was among the medallists at the 2004 Summer Olympic Games.

Many times, Azerbaijan has been chosen as the host country for major boxing championships.

The AIBA Youth World Championships were held in Baku in 2019. This world championship was the first licensed youth tournament to qualify for the 2010 Olympic Games held in Singapore.

The country also hosted the 2011 AIBA World Boxing Championships, which was the first major qualifying event for the London 2012 Olympic Games.