Vitaly Gurkov
Encyclopedia
Vitaly Gurkov sometimes spelt as Vitaly Hurkou, is a Belarus
ian welterweight
Muay Thai
kickboxer fighting out of Minsk
for Patriot Gym. He is a seven time amateur
Muay Thai world champion and is the K-1 World MAX 2010 East Europe champion currently competing in K-1 MAX
.
European Championships.
In 2008 Vitaly entered the 4th Busan TAFISA World Games in Busan, South Korea which was holding the 2008 I.F.M.A. World Championship. He made the final but had to make do with silver – losing his final match to the Ukrainian
Petr Nakonechnyi
. He returned with a vengeance the following year winning the 2009 I.F.M.A. European Championship and the 2009 I.F.M.A. World Championship. At the world championship Vitaly defeated Marcus Öberg
in the quarter finals before gaining his revenge on Nakonechnyi in the semi finals on route to winning gold. At the I.F.M.A. world championships in 2010, Vitaly made it through to the final but lost in the gold medal match, although he would win gold earlier on in the year at the I.F.M.A. European Championships in Italy. So far in his amateur career he has nine medals at World championships (seven gold, two silver) and three golds at European championships from 61 kg through to his current weight of 71 kg.
n Greg Foley in the final to win the event. In 2008 he attempted to qualify for the "The Contender Asia
" Season 2 Muay Thai reality show in Chelyabinsk, Russia. He defeated amateur rival Petr Nakonechnyi
in the semi finals but lost to reigning 75 kg I.M.F.A. World Champion Artem Levin
by TKO
in the final. In 2009 he had more disappointment, losing in the final of the Tatneft Cup -70 kg category.
In 2010 Vitaly made his mark on the professional circuit at the K-1 World MAX 2010 East Europe Tournament on March 19 in Minsk, Belarus. He defeated his first two opponents by decision before facing Zamin Guseynov
from Azerbaijan
in the final. After three rounds Vitaly was crowned K-1 World MAX 2010 East Europe champion defeating his opponent by unanimous decision
. This victory meant that Vitaly qualified for kickboxing’s most prestigious competition at the forthcoming K-1 World MAX 2010 Final 16. At the event Vitaly was given the toughest draw, having to face reigning K-1 champion Giorgio Petrosyan
in Seoul. After three rounds Vitaly failed to cause an upset, his K-1 MAX dream finished by an unanimous decision
defeat. A few weeks later he was knocked out of another high profile tournament, losing to Petchmunkong Petchfocus in the second round of the Izuzu Thai Fight Muay Thai
competition.
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
ian welterweight
Kickboxing weight classes
Kickboxing weight class names and its system are not unified at all, so each weight division system of every kickboxing organization is shown in this article.-Amateur:-Professional:Males and females follow the same weight division system....
Muay Thai
Muay Thai
Muay Thai is a combat sport from Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is similar to other Indochinese kickboxing systems, namely pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia, lethwei from Myanmar and muay Lao from Laos...
kickboxer fighting out of Minsk
Minsk
- Ecological situation :The ecological situation is monitored by Republican Center of Radioactive and Environmental Control .During 2003–2008 the overall weight of contaminants increased from 186,000 to 247,400 tons. The change of gas as industrial fuel to mazut for financial reasons has worsened...
for Patriot Gym. He is a seven time amateur
Amateur sports
Amateur sports are sports in which participants engage largely or entirely without remuneration. Sporting amateurism was a zealously guarded ideal in the 19th century, especially among the upper classes, but faced steady erosion throughout the 20th century with the continuing growth of pro sports...
Muay Thai world champion and is the K-1 World MAX 2010 East Europe champion currently competing in K-1 MAX
K-1
K-1 is a defunct world-wide kickboxing promotion based in Tokyo, Japan founded by Kazuyoshi Ishii, a formerKyokushin karate practitioner. K-1 combines stand up techniques from Muay Thai, Karate, Taekwondo, Savate, San Shou, kickboxing, western-style boxing, and other martial arts...
.
Amateur career
Vitaly has been a prominent member of the Belarusian Muay Thai national team. He won his first international tournament in his teens, winning gold at the 2001 I.F.M.A. European Championships. He followed this up two years later aged just 17 by winning a gold medal in the 61 kg category at the 2003 I.A.M.T.F. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand. Between 2004 and 2008 Vitaly would win four gold medals at the W.M.F. world championships (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) along with a gold medal at the 2004 W.K.P.F. World Championships and gold at the 2006 W.A.K.O.World Association of Kickboxing Organizations
The World Association of Kickboxing Organisations is one the international organization of kickboxing, and the governing body of Amateur kickboxing sport certified by SportAccord...
European Championships.
In 2008 Vitaly entered the 4th Busan TAFISA World Games in Busan, South Korea which was holding the 2008 I.F.M.A. World Championship. He made the final but had to make do with silver – losing his final match to the Ukrainian
Ukraine
Ukraine is a country in Eastern Europe. It has an area of 603,628 km², making it the second largest contiguous country on the European continent, after Russia...
Petr Nakonechnyi
Petr Nakonechnyi
Petr Nakonechnyi is a Ukrainian welterweight Muay Thai kickboxer, fighting out of the Captain Odessa gym in Odessa...
. He returned with a vengeance the following year winning the 2009 I.F.M.A. European Championship and the 2009 I.F.M.A. World Championship. At the world championship Vitaly defeated Marcus Öberg
Marcus Öberg
Marcus Öberg is a Swedish middleweight Muay Thai kickboxer fighting out of Malmö Muay Thai Gym in Malmö. He is former two time Swedish champion and K-1 Scandinavia MAX 2008 tournament winner.-Titles:...
in the quarter finals before gaining his revenge on Nakonechnyi in the semi finals on route to winning gold. At the I.F.M.A. world championships in 2010, Vitaly made it through to the final but lost in the gold medal match, although he would win gold earlier on in the year at the I.F.M.A. European Championships in Italy. So far in his amateur career he has nine medals at World championships (seven gold, two silver) and three golds at European championships from 61 kg through to his current weight of 71 kg.
Professional career
As a result of his extremely successful amateur career, Vitaly has increasingly become involved in professional competitions. In 2007 he entered the W.M.C. Brute Force 8 Judgment Day -72 kg tournament in Melbourne, Australia. Vitaly showed his amateur skills were not lost on the professional circuit, defeating AustraliaAustralia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
n Greg Foley in the final to win the event. In 2008 he attempted to qualify for the "The Contender Asia
The Contender Asia
The Contender Asia was a reality-based television series that follows 16 aspiring Muay Thai middleweight fighters from 12 countries as they compete in a series of outdoor challenges and sanctioned matches...
" Season 2 Muay Thai reality show in Chelyabinsk, Russia. He defeated amateur rival Petr Nakonechnyi
Petr Nakonechnyi
Petr Nakonechnyi is a Ukrainian welterweight Muay Thai kickboxer, fighting out of the Captain Odessa gym in Odessa...
in the semi finals but lost to reigning 75 kg I.M.F.A. World Champion Artem Levin
Artem Levin
Artem "The Lion" Levin is a Russian light heavyweight Muay Thai kickboxer fighting out of Prokopyevsk...
by TKO
Knockout
A knockout is a fight-ending, winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts, Karate and others sports involving striking...
in the final. In 2009 he had more disappointment, losing in the final of the Tatneft Cup -70 kg category.
In 2010 Vitaly made his mark on the professional circuit at the K-1 World MAX 2010 East Europe Tournament on March 19 in Minsk, Belarus. He defeated his first two opponents by decision before facing Zamin Guseynov
Zamin Guseynov
-Titles:* K-1 WORLD MAX 2010 -East Europe Tournament Finalist* 2008 WBKF European title Finalist* 2008 K-1 Professional International tournament Baku Champion* 2008 Gladiator2 Champion* 2007 Gladiator1 Champion-See also:...
from Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan , officially the Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded by the Caspian Sea to the east, Russia to the north, Georgia to the northwest, Armenia to the west, and Iran to...
in the final. After three rounds Vitaly was crowned K-1 World MAX 2010 East Europe champion defeating his opponent by unanimous decision
Unanimous decision
A unanimous decision is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking in which all three judges agree on which fighter won the match....
. This victory meant that Vitaly qualified for kickboxing’s most prestigious competition at the forthcoming K-1 World MAX 2010 Final 16. At the event Vitaly was given the toughest draw, having to face reigning K-1 champion Giorgio Petrosyan
Giorgio Petrosyan
Gevorg "Giorgio" Petrosyan is an Armenian-Italian welterweight kickboxer, fighting out of Satori Gladiatorium in Gorizia, Italy. He is the two time K-1 World MAX champion and WKN Intercontinental Middleweight Muay Thai champion....
in Seoul. After three rounds Vitaly failed to cause an upset, his K-1 MAX dream finished by an unanimous decision
Unanimous decision
A unanimous decision is a winning criterion in several full-contact combat sports, such as boxing, kickboxing, Muay Thai, mixed martial arts and others sports involving striking in which all three judges agree on which fighter won the match....
defeat. A few weeks later he was knocked out of another high profile tournament, losing to Petchmunkong Petchfocus in the second round of the Izuzu Thai Fight Muay Thai
Muay Thai
Muay Thai is a combat sport from Thailand that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. It is similar to other Indochinese kickboxing systems, namely pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia, lethwei from Myanmar and muay Lao from Laos...
competition.
Titles
- Professional:
- 2010 K-1 World MAX East Europe Champion
- 2009 Tatneft Cup Runner Up
- 2008 "The Contender AsiaThe Contender AsiaThe Contender Asia was a reality-based television series that follows 16 aspiring Muay Thai middleweight fighters from 12 countries as they compete in a series of outdoor challenges and sanctioned matches...
" Season 2 Russia Super 8 Qualifier Runner Up - 2007 W.M.C. Brute Force 8 Judgement Day Champion
- Amateur:
- 2010 I.F.M.A. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand
-71 kg - 2010 I.F.M.A. European Championships in Velletri, Italy
-71 kg - 2009 I.F.M.A. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand -71 kg
- 2009 I.F.M.A. European Championships in Liepāja, Latvia -71 kg
- 2008 I.F.M.A. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand -71 kg
- 2007 W.M.F. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand -71 kg
- 2006 W.M.F. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand -67 kg
- 2006 W.A.K.O. European Championships in Skopje, MacedoniaW.A.K.O. European Championships 2006 (Skopje)W.A.K.O. European Championships 2006 in Skopje were the joint eighteenth European kickboxing championships held by the W.A.K.O. organization...
-67 kg (Thai-Boxing) - 2005 W.M.F. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand
- 2004 W.K.P.F. World Championships
- 2004 W.M.F. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand
- 2003 I.A.M.T.F. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand -61 kg
- 2001 I.F.M.A. European Championships
- 2010 I.F.M.A. World Championships in Bangkok, Thailand
Kickboxing Record
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