Boris KUZNETSOV

Hailing from the southern city of Astrakhan, Boris Kuznetsov was the top Soviet featherweight boxer of the early 1970s, winning the national title in 1972 and 1974 after losing the 1970 and 1971 finals. He also won a gold at the 1971 Spartakiad. Selected for the 1972 Olympics, he won six bouts to claim Olympic gold. He couldn't follow up on his success at the 1973 Europeans, being eliminated in the first round of competition. Kuznetsov retired with an amateur record of 237 wins out of 249 bouts. He later opened a boxing school in his home town, Astrakhan.