ABRAHAM IS A GERMAN. IBF MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPION WITH NEW NATIONALITY AS OF NOW

EastsideBoxing.com
Sept 4 2006

04.09.06 – Markus Beyer has lost a title – but without having
competed in a fight… the super middleweight champion can no longer
call himself the "only German boxing champion." From this time on a
second German is in possession of a world championship belt – Arthur
Abraham. For a long time the Armenian-born with the worldwide hardest
punch of all middleweight boxers had to wait for his naturalization
document and the passport with the golden eagle.. Today both documents
have been handed over to him at the resident´s registration office in
Berlin Charlottenburg-Wilmersdorf – the 26th year old Sauerland-boxer
had to relinquish his Armenian nationality instead.

Arthur Abraham: "I was born in Armenia, my roots are there – but I
grew up in Germany", says the IBF champion being under contract to
the Sauerland team since 2003. "Here I made something of myself.

Therefore I owe everything to Germany. I like living here. Germany
is my home and that´s final."

Markus Beyer smilingly accepts the title loss. "I´m pleased for
Arthur", the super middleweight champion says. In October he has to
provide for the greatest challenge of his career by competing against
Mikkel Kessler in Kopenhagen. "Now there are two German boxing world
champions. And we hope that´s final."

A statement of the German Olympic Sports Association (DOSB) has
been necessary for the complicated procedure of granting the German
nationality. This has been granted but it has run into difficulties.

Athletes resident in team sports have top priority to the DOSB
concerning naturalization. Therefore "single combatants" like Arthur
Abraham have a harder time of it. Finally Berlin´s domestic senator
Ehrhard Korting gave helpful support. He himself fought for the
champion successfully.

The champion is going to defend his title on 23rd September in
Wetzlar. The defence against the Colombian Edison Miranda having been
planed for last Saturday in Oldenburg had to be postponed because of
Abraham´s illness. After the walk in a string quartet will play the
German national anthem in honor of Abraham. "Einigkeit und Recht und
Freiheit (unity and justice and freedom)" – and Arthur may enjoy this
moment with a complete new feeling.

–Boundary_(ID_B/jCH35tCrmWZa8bDazqtQ)–