Robert Helenius
Robert Gabriel Helenius ( born January 2, 1984 in Stockholm, Sweden) is a Finnish professional boxer and current European champion of the EBU heavyweight and support of the Intercontinental Championship title of the WBO and WBA.
Amateur career
Robert Helenius grew up in Porvoo and began with 14 years at the local club Porvoon Nyrkkeilyseura with the boxes. He was trained by his father Karl Helenius and began his amateur career in 1998. Helenius was from 2003 to 2005 three-time Finnish champion in super heavyweight, 2001, he took second place.
His first international success was the third place in 2000 at the European Championships in the age class of the Cadet (U -17) in Patras, where he failed in the semi-final on Croatians Mario Preskar. The following year he again reached at the Junior European Championships in Sarajevo the semi-finals, but lost to his opponent Islam Timursijew from Russia prematurely. In 2002, he then took part in the Junior World Championships in Santiago de Cuba, but failed it already in the first round of the tournament.
At the 2005 World Championships in Mianyang China was defeated in the second round turn prematurely against the Uzbeks, Rustam Saidov, bronze medalist of the Olympic Games in Sydney. In the 2006 European Championship in Plovdiv he made then talked about when he could beat all opponents early on the way to the finals and then only in the final battle Islam Timursijew defeated on points. Since December 2006, he fought in the German boxing Bundesliga for the Boxabteilung of Hertha BSC, the Sauerland boxing stable had secured the option for a possible professional contract after the Olympic Games in 2008.
However, due to a training injury, he could at the amateur world championships in 2007 in Chicago, which was the qualifying tournament for the Olympic Games at the same time, do not participate. In the following first European qualifying tournament in Italy Pescara he lost the first starting Azerbaijan Russians David Arschba. Arschba then easily reached the semi-finals and was considered a favorite to win the tournament, but then was allowed to start from the AIBA as not for Azerbaijan disqualified. The place Arschbas in the semifinals was then raffled among all boxers who had previously lost to him and went on this way to Helenius, who however could not use this opportunity and lost against the Croat Marko Tomasović. In the second European qualifying tournament in Athens, he also awarded the last chance to take part in the Beijing Games when he defeated the Lithuanians Jaroslawas Jaksto.
Professional career
After the failure in the Olympic qualification Helenius was the Berlin Boxstall by Wilfried Sauerland professional. Since his pro debut, he is trained by Ulli Wegner. His first professional fight Helenius won on May 17, 2008 in Bayreuth against the German Gene Pukall ( Record 14-11 ) by technical knockout in the first round. In 2009, he defeated former English champion Scott Gammer and the Ukrainian Taras Bidenko each prematurely.
His first major success as a professional he posted in January 2010 with a victory over former WBO titlist Lamon Brewster. He scored in the second round of a precipitate; this was only the second time in Brewster's career that he had to go to the ground. The fight ended in a technical whacked in the eighth round and ended the comeback attempt Brewsters, who then ended his career. After a points victory in March 2010 on the Nigerian Olympian Gbenga Oluokun 21 August 2010, Helenius won the fight against Gregory Tony for the vacant EBU -EU title in the heavyweight division. Helenius defeated the French technical knockout after a total of four times in the sixth round brought Tony to the ground. The EU title he defended in November 2010 against Attila Levin from Sweden by technical knockout in the second round.
In 2011 Helenius defeated the Nigerian Samuel Peter and the White Russians Syarhey Ljachowitsch, both former world champion of the short-term associations WBC and WBO, each prematurely by Ko in the ninth round. He was nominated for a battle for championship then, as an opponent was determined Dereck Chisora from Great Britain. The fight was organized by Sauerland Event on December 4, 2011 in Helsinki and ended after twelve rounds with a split scoring (2x 115-113 for Helenius, 1x 115-113 for Chisora ) in favor of Helenius ', which, in a controversial decision of the EM title was awarded.
After nearly a year's break due to a ligament injury on November 10, 2012, he defeated Sherman Williams on points. In March 2013, he also won unanimously against Michael Sprott.
List of professional bouts
Private
Robert Helenius, who owns next to the Finnish and Swedish citizenship, lives with his fiancée and his two children in Berlin.