Esra Yıldız Kahraman (born 4 July 1997) is a Turkish

amateur boxer An amateur () is generally considered a person who pursues an avocation independent from their source of income. Amateurs and their pursuits are also described as popular, informal, self-taught, user-generated, DIY, and hobbyist. History ...

who won a bronze medal in the

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing (sport), rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) boxing weight classes, weight class in the spor ...

divisions at the 2016 European Championships. She was named as a competitor for Turkey at the

2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

Personal life

Esra Yıldız was born in

Nevşehir Nevşehir (; from 'new' and 'city') is a city in the Central Anatolia Region of Turkey. It is the seat of Nevşehir Province and Nevşehir District.Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

on 4 July 1997. After completing her high school education at Altınyıldız College in Nevşehir in 2015, she entered Nevşehir Hacı Bektaş Veli University to study Physical Education and Sport, graduating in 2019.

Amateur boxing career

Yıldız started boxing at Nevşehir Gençlik Sports Club in 2010. In 2012, she participated in Turkey's Championships held in

Kayseri Kayseri () is a large List of cities in Turkey, city in Central Anatolia, Turkey, and the capital of Kayseri Province, Kayseri province. Historically known as Caesarea (Mazaca), Caesarea, it has been the historical capital of Cappadocia since anc ...

. She became champion in the 57 kg division, and was named the "Most Hyped Boxer" (). Following her victory she was admitted to Turkey's national team. She debuted internationally at the 2012 European Cadets and Juniors Boxing Championships in

Władysławowo Władysławowo (Kashubian language, Kashubian/Pomeranian language, Pomeranian: ''Wiôlgô Wies'' �vʲɞlɡɞ ˈvʲɛs ) is a city on the south coast of the Baltic Sea in Kashubia in the Pomerelia region, northern Poland, with 9,363 inhabitant ...

, Poland, and won the bronze medal n the -57 kg division. In June 2013, she took part at the VII EUBC European Union Women Elite Youth and Junior Boxing Championships 2013 in

Keszthely Keszthely (; also known by alternative names) is a Hungarian city of 20,895 inhabitants located on the western shore of Lake Balaton. It is the second largest city by the lake and one of the more important cultural, educational and economic hub ...

, Hungary, and captured the gold medal in the junior 60 kg division. The same year, she took the silver medal in the junior 60 kg event at the

AIBA The International Boxing Association (IBA), previously known as the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA), is a sports organization that sanctions amateur and professional boxing matches and awards world and subordinate championships. ...

Women's Junior/Youth World Boxing Championships held in Albena, Bulgaria. Yıldız participated at the

2014 Summer Youth Olympics The 2014 Summer Youth Olympics (), officially known as the II Summer Youth Olympic Games , and commonly known as Nanjing 2014 ( zh, c=南京2014, p=Nánjīng Èr Líng yī sì), were the second Youth Olympic Games, Summer Youth Olympic Games, an ...

Nanjing Nanjing or Nanking is the capital of Jiangsu, a province in East China. The city, which is located in the southwestern corner of the province, has 11 districts, an administrative area of , and a population of 9,423,400. Situated in the Yang ...

, China. She won the silver medal in the youth lightweight event at the 2014 AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships in

Sofia Sofia is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Bulgaria, largest city of Bulgaria. It is situated in the Sofia Valley at the foot of the Vitosha mountain, in the western part of the country. The city is built west of the Is ...

in Bulgaria. She took part at the 2016 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships in

Astana Astana is the capital city of Kazakhstan. With a population of 1,423,726 within the city limits, it is the second-largest in the country after Almaty, which had been the capital until 1997. The city lies on the banks of the Ishim (river), Ishim ...

, Kazakhstan. At the 2016 EUBC Women's Boxing Championships in

, Bulgaria, she won the bronze medal. She competed in the featherweight (54–57 kg) division at the 2018 AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships in

New Delhi New Delhi (; ) is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the Government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati Bhavan, New Parliament ...

, India. In 2019, she was a finalist at the Balkan Boxing Championships. Yıldız won the bronze medal at the

2020 European Boxing Olympic Qualification Tournament The 2020 European Boxing Olympic Qualification Tournament for boxing at the 2020 Summer Olympics began on 14 March 2020 at the Copper Box Arena in London. On 16 March, the tournament was suspended and postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It ...

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

. She was named as a competitor for the

2020 Summer Olympics The officially the and officially branded as were an international multi-sport event that was held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some of the preliminary sporting events beginning on 21 July 2021. Tokyo ...

. Yıldız is a member of Fenerbahçe Boxing, where she is coached by Nedim Baba.

2024 Summer Olympics controversy

In 2024, Yildiz, representing Turkey in the women's featherweight (57 kg) boxing competition at the

in Paris, lost to

Lin Yu-ting Lin Yu-ting (; born 13 December 1995) is a Taiwanese amateur boxer. She has won two gold medals at the IBA World Boxing Championships, in addition to two gold medals at the Asian Games and one at the Asian Amateur Boxing Championships. She comp ...

Taiwan Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

(

Republic of China Taiwan, officially the Republic of China (ROC), is a country in East Asia. The main geography of Taiwan, island of Taiwan, also known as ''Formosa'', lies between the East China Sea, East and South China Seas in the northwestern Pacific Ocea ...

) with a score of 0:5 in the semifinals, securing a bronze medal. After the match, Kahraman sparked controversy by making an X gesture with her index finger. This gesture was likely related to a previous incident where Lin had been stripped of a bronze medal at a championship organized by the Russian-led

International Boxing Association The International Boxing Association (IBA), previously known as the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA), is a sports organization that sanctions amateur boxing, amateur and professional boxing matches and awards world and subordinate ...

(IBA) due to alleged testing irregularities. The controversy occurred during ongoing debates about gender eligibility in boxing though the IBA did not disclose the testing methodology, stating that the "specifics remain confidential".

The Washington Post ''The Washington Post'', locally known as ''The'' ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'' or ''WP'', is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C., the national capital. It is the most widely circulated newspaper in the Washington m ...

reported that the specifics of the failed tests for both Lin Yu-ting and another boxer,

Imane Khelif Imane Khelif (, ; born 2 May 1999) is an Algerian Professional boxing, professional boxer who won the gold medal in the Boxing at the 2024 Summer Olympics – Women's 66 kg, women's 66 kg (welterweight) boxing event at the 2024 Summer Olympics ...

, remained unclear. In June 2023, the IBA's Olympic status was revoked due to governance issues and perceived judging and refereeing corruption. The

International Olympic Committee The International Olympic Committee (IOC; , CIO) is the international, non-governmental, sports governing body of the modern Olympic Games. Founded in 1894 by Pierre de Coubertin and Demetrios Vikelas, it is based i ...

(IOC) and its Paris Boxing Unit had previously criticized similar disqualifications as "sudden and arbitrary" and taken "without any due process".

References

External links

* *
Esra Yildiz
at the

Paris 2024 Summer Olympics The 2024 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXIII Olympiad () and branded as Paris 2024, were an international multi-sport event held in France from 26 July to 11 August 2024, with several events started from 24 July. P ...

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Yildiz, Esra 1997 births Living people Sportspeople from Nevşehir Turkish women boxers Lightweight boxers Fenerbahçe boxers Boxers at the 2014 Summer Youth Olympics Boxers at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic boxers for Turkey 21st-century Turkish sportswomen Boxers at the 2024 Summer Olympics Medalists at the 2024 Summer Olympics Olympic bronze medalists for Turkey Olympic medalists in boxing AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships medalists