SYDNEY – Tim Tszyu’s fight with Anthony Velazquez will proceed as planned despite fears of a postponement or cancellation as a consequence of Sunday evening’s terrorist shooting.
The 157lbs catchweight contest at the TikTok Entertainment Centre was feared in jeopardy as a consequence of what unfolded at nearby Bondi Beach on Sunday, and to that end at late notice Monday’s final pre-fight press conference was cancelled.
Following discussions between the promoters No Limit and the relevant authorities, after a period of uncertainty it has instead been confirmed that both Tuesday’s weigh-in and Wednesday’s promotion will take place.
According to Australian officials 15 people – including a 10-year-old girl – were killed in the attack targeting the Jewish community at a Hannukah event in what has been declared a terrorist attack by police and described by the Prime Minister Anthony Albanese as “an act of antisemitism… [and] terrorism on our shores”.
The gunmen, reportedly, were father and son. The father, 50, died after being shot by police. The 24-year-old son is in a critical condition.
That mass shootings are so rare in Australia has contributed to the city of Sydney being left in a state of shock. Sunday’s attack is the deadliest in the country since 35 people were killed by a lone gunman in Port Arthur in 1996.
“Given what happened yesterday at Bondi we cancelled the press conference, both out of respect and safety,” No Limit’s George Rose told BoxingScene. “Everything goes ahead for the fight and the weigh-in will still take place.
“What happened yesterday is something that was very unexpected and very sad. Assuming that everything is per normal over the next 48 hours, the fight goes ahead.
“We had a meeting this morning and made the decision to cancel [the press conference], mostly out of respect. What you see in a boxing press conference and everything in the lead up to the fight – it’s all excitement and entertainment, and today is a day where a lot of people are grieving and a lot of people are impacted and the two different energy levels just don’t synchronize. Respectfully, we’ve chosen this route today.”
No Limit are preparing to mark Sunday’s tragedy on fight night. The contest, incidentally, represents the 31-year-old Tszyu’s first in his home city for almost three years.
“There’ll be some acknowledgement and respect shown,” Rose explained. “We share our condolences with anybody who was affected by it, because it’s a very sad thing. It’s not something that we see here in Australia.
“I’ve always thought of Sydney as one of the best cities in the world and I do still think Australia’s the best country in the world. This is something that I think, as a community, we’ll all come together and show our respect to anybody who was affected by it.
“As Australian people we show our support for each other. We show our respect to people in instances like this.”
The undefeated Velazquez, 29, is in his 20th fight as a professional, and is fighting for the first time outside of the U.S.
