“Regardless of any move by Joshua, the crowd was cheering even if it was a miss, and I think it certainly influenced the final result”; Roberto Cammarelle reflects on defeat by Anthony Joshua in the London 2012 Olympic final
Roberto Cammarelle says he “can’t understand” how Anthony Joshua was awarded victory against him in the 2012 Olympic final and believes the crowd “influenced the judges”
Italy’s 2008 Olympic champion fought Joshua for the super-heavyweight gold medal at the London Games, suffering a defeat by countback after the scores were tied at 18-18 following their three-round bout.
But Cammarelle, who extended a 6-5 lead to 13-10 before the final round, has questioned how Joshua closed the deficit.
“As far as I can remember, I think I managed to fight exceptionally well during the two rounds,” Cammarelle told Sky Sports.
“The last round, he did not fight to overcome me. He was just sort of managing the fight. Having an equal number of points, an equal score, I can’t understand [how] I didn’t win.
“I thought I was managing the advantage I had managed to win over the first round.
“I’ve always had great physical issues. My physical preparation had only started a month before the Olympics. The fact that the semi-final was so close to the final certainly weakened my body.
