AIBA World Championships Chicago 2007

They came, 557 boxers from more than a hundred countries. They saw Chicago, the U.S. city that hopes to host the 2016 Olympics. And some of them conquered. Eleven boxers won gold medals Saturday and 69 others won enough earlier bouts to qualify for the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games.

With all of that accomplished, the AIBA World Boxing Championships Chicago 2007 ended 11 days of competition Saturday at the University of Illinois-Chicago’s UIC Pavilion.

It was a particularly satisfying experience for the Russian team. By winning eight medals, including three gold and three silver in the finals, the Russians established themselves as kingpins to beat in Beijing.

But it was also a positive tournament for others, particularly the Americans, Italians and Chinese.