Anthony Fowler was knocked down in the second round
Anthony Fowler's Olympic dream was shattered in Rio as he was floored in the second and lost all three rounds to middleweight beast Zhanibek Alimkhanuly of Kazakhstan.
The Liverpool cousin of footballing legend Robbie Fowler gave it everything, but right at the start of the second round a vicious left hook had him in trouble, before a repeat shot sent him to the canvas.
Fowler got back to his feet but even with the Olympic format not guaranteeing a knockdown earning a 10-8 score, it set up a major disappointment when the Team GB star lost a unanimous decision after nine brutal minutes, 30-27, 30-26, 30-26.
It was tough before the first bell had even sounded as he was up against the world championship gold medallist from 2013, when a hand injury prevented the Brit from taking him on in the final and was forced to settle for bronze.
Fowler looked ready to make the most of his second chance in the opening round, his right to the body and the odd combination keeping him opponent in cautious mode.
Kazakhstan's Zhanibek Alimkhanuly beat Anthony Fowler with a unanimous decision
It didn't take long though for Alimkhanuly to show his class with a lovely left-right double and despite an encouraging start, the second-round knockdown was ultimately the beginning of the end.
Fowler did try and fight back but Alimkhanuly continued to land powerful left hooks and even in the third, when he knew he needed a knockdown to at least plant some seeds of doubt into the judges' minds, he was caught again, inside and at range several times.
The unanimous decision meant that Fowler was the first Team GB fighter to bid farewell after his opening bout and the second to exit the Rio tournament after Galal Yafai's close points loss at light-flyweight.
Resource: skysports.com
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