(DEC 18) Two World Boxing
Federation Champions successfully defended their titles on
Saturday, December 15, as International Welterweight titlist
Loic Foure won a unanimous decision over Kobe Vandekerkhove in
France, and Women’s World Light Flyweight ruler Ju Hee Kim
scored a TKO over Ploynapa Sakrungrueng in Seoul, South Korea.
In France, Foure, making the first defense of his title, was
given a stern challenge by Belgian Champion Vandekerkhove, but
in the end it was the local man who prevailed on the scorecards
at the Salle Omnisports in Sain-Maur.
Judges Noel Monnet (France), Jean-Pierre Van Imschoot (Belgium)
and Alexander Plumanns (Germany) all had it in favor of Foure by
scores of 96-95, 96-94 and 97-93 respectively.
With the victory, Foure took his professional ledger to 20-7-3
(4), while Vandekerkhove drops to 21-15-3 (6). Promoter of the
card was Saint-Maur Boxe.
In Seoul, incredibly popular Ju Hee Kim demonstrated that she is
a top-notch champion by defending her WBF World title for the
third time in a rematch with Thailand’s Sakrungrueng. The pair
also fought this past March with Kim winning in round six, but
this time the challenger managed to stick around until the
tenth.
Sakrungrueng did all she could to overcome the fast combinations
and pressure of Kim, but never really managed to gain the
necessary momentum to turn the tide. When Sakrungrueng once in a
while had some success, Kim turned up the heat and in the final
round the referee had seen enough and stopped the bout.
Ju Hee Kim, a true sporting icon in her native country, improved
her record to 17-1-1 (8), and Sakrungrueng fell to 9-3 (0). The
show was promoted by Geoin Promotion.