Shock win earns Joshua 2012 place
Finchley super-heavyweight Anthony Joshua produced a stunning upset to outpoint reigning world and Olympic champion Roberto Cammarelle and book his place at the London 2012 Olympics.
Joshua came back from a first-round deficit with a composed performance to earn a 15-13 victory, jolting his veteran Italian opponent with a superb left-uppercut in the second and again with a long right in the third round.
The win takes Joshua through to the World Championship semi-finals on his debut in the competition, as well as to London where he will join the already-qualified Thomas Stalker, Luke Campbell and Fred Evans.
Joshua said: "I always believed I could beat Cammarelle, so I'm not shocked about it. It's not always the name but who is the best boxer on the day. Cammarelle is a legend and I have great respect for him.
"I had a tough learning curve at the Europeans. I'd never boxed three times before and I was so close to wining a medal. But sometimes making mistakes isn't a bad thing. I've learned from that and come back stronger."
Joshua's win marks a remarkable turnaround in fortunes for Great Britain's bid to find a credible challenger at +91kgs. Less than six months ago, Joshua was not even a member of the GB podium squad.
Earlier, Campbell and Stalker booked their respective semi-final places, as did Welshman Andrew Selby. But flyweight rival Khalid Yafai and the already-qualified Evans both bowed out.
