Beaten to the punch

May 3, 2010 - 8:11 PM by David

Hagar Finer celebrates her victory.

Who knew that Israel even had women boxers – let alone the world champion?

Hometown girl Hagar Finer retained her Womens International Boxing Federation (WIBF) bantamweight crown by handily defeating Latvian challenger Agnese Boza with a fifth-round knockout earlier this week at the Nokia Arena in Tel Aviv before a nationally televised audience.

According to Ha’aretz, Finer was greeted with a rousing ovation from an audience that was dotted celebrities from the entertainment and sports world.

Finer has been involved in the fighting game since she took up martial arts at age 13. She quickly became the Israeli karate champion for her age group. When she was 17, her coach Raanan Tal told Finer, now 25, that boxing was the way to develop further. Coach Tal was in Finer’s corner this week when she emerged victorious against Boza.

Finer insists that boxing is not her career but a hobby. “What’s come of it is wonderful, but my career goal is to be a trainer,” she told Ha’aretz. “I plan to study, and I hope to open my own martial-arts club.”

In the meantime, we can celebrate having our own Rocky.

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