Mario Kindelán

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Medal record
Competitor for  Cuba
Men’s Boxing
Olympic Games
Gold	Sydney 2000	Lightweight
Gold	Athens 2004	Lightweight
World Amateur Championships
Gold	Houston 1999	Lightweight
Gold	Belfast 2001	Lightweight
Gold	Bangkok 2003	Lightweight
Pan American Games
Gold	Winnipeg 1999	Lightweight
Gold	Santo Domingo 2003	Lightweight

Mario César Kindelán Mesa (born August 10, 1971 in Holguín) is a former two time Olympic Gold Medalist amateur boxer from Cuba, who competed in the lightweight category.

Contents 1 Success 2 Amateur Highlights 2.1 2000 Olympic Games 2.2 2004 Athens Olympic Games 3 Retirement

[edit] Success

His most successful period came in a winning streak starting with the 1999 Pan American Games title, and covered every major event he entered including the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, three world championships (1999, 2001, 2003), and the 2003 Pan American Games. His most recent victory was at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, defeating Amir Khan in the final, and retaining his gold medal from four years earlier.

Kindelán was named among the top ten athletes in Cuba for 1999, as well as being selected 'Best Boxer in Cuba' in the same year.

[edit] Amateur Highlights

• 1998 World Cup Champion
• 1999 Pan-American Games Champion
• 1999 World Champion
• 2000 Olympic Gold Medalist
• 2001 World Champion
• 2003 World Champion
• 2003 Pan-American Games Champion
• 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist

In 1999, he was named as one of the top ten athletes in Cuba, and was named boxer of the year.

[edit] 2000 Olympic Games

• 1st round bye
• Defeated Pongsit Wiangviset (Thailand) 14-8
• Defeated Tigran Ouzlian (Greece) RSC 4
• Defeated Alexandr Maletin (Russia) 27-15
• Defeated Andreas Kotelnik (Ukraine) 14-4 in the Gold Medal match.

[edit] 2004 Athens Olympic Games

Kindelan's results in the games, were as follows:

• Round of 32: Defeated Ahmed Sadiq of Nigeria (RSC-3)
• Round of 16: Defeated Asghar Ali Shah of Pakistan (24-9)
• Quarterfinals: Defeated Rovshan Huseynov of Azerbaijan (23-11)
• Semifinals: Defeated Murat Khrachev of Russia (20-10)
• Gold Medal match: Defeated Amir Khan of Great Britain (30-22)

[edit] Retirement

In May 2005, aged 34, he came out of retirement and travelled to Bolton, England for a third fight with Amir Khan. He had beaten Khan twice already the previous year – in the Pre-Olympic tournament and the Olympic Lightweight final – however Khan had become a popular attraction in the UK and a third fight was arranged to set up his professional debut. Khan beat Kindelan on points 19-13.

Having retired, he is generally considered as one of the greatest amateur boxers ever seen, leading to the comment during his final fight by the boxing commentator that he was "a professional in a vest".

Typical for athletes from Cuba, where professional sport is prohibited, his reward is pride in representing his people on the Olympic stage. He said, of being offered $1 million to compete professionally, "I thanked them, but money cannot buy what I have." [1]