TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwanese boxer Chen Nien-chin (陳念琴) routed her Ukrainian opponent Anastasiia Chernokolenko by unanimous decision in the 66kg weight class in an Olympic qualifying tournament in Busto Arsizio, Italy, on Monday (March 11), punching her ticket for the Paris Summer Olympics.

After the match, Chen fell to her knees and kissed the boxing ring, later hugging coach Ko Wen-ming (柯文明). Chen has now qualified for her third Olympics, following appearances at the 2016 Rio Olympics and the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, per UDN.

Ko said Chen was a bit too eager, and it cost her early on in the match. "In the first two rounds, we were a little tied up, and we didn't return to form until the third round. But no matter what, we are happy to earn an Olympic bid,” said Ko.

Chen came out cautious in round one against Chernokolenko, relying on a simple jab to keep her opponent off balance and throwing a few combinations. From the second round onwards, Chen went on the offensive, scoring several direct strikes while dodging her opponent’s punches.

Chen won the second and third rounds handily, and in the end, she won a unanimous decision from the judges, 5-0. Ko said more fine-tuning will take place when they return to Taiwan, but he was impressed by Chen’s performance.

According to Olympic qualifying tournament rules, once the top four finalists have been determined, no subsequent boxing matches are held. Taiwan sent three women and two men to the 2024 Olympics First World Qualification Tournament in Italy, but only Chen qualified for the Olympics.

So far, five Taiwanese boxers have qualified for the Olympics, including Chen, Kan Chia-wei (甘家葳), Lin Yuting (林郁婷), Wu Shih-yi (吳詩儀), and Lai Chu-en (賴主恩).