Paris (AFP)

The French boxer Sofiane Oumiha, Olympic vice-champion of the lightweight in 2016, announced Wednesday his future passage among the professionals with the signing in the coming days of a contract with the famous English promoter Frank Warren.

"I made the choice after the Rio Olympics to stay in Olympic boxing because I still have the Olympic dream in me, but the Covid and the uncertainty surrounding the holding of the Tokyo Games have called everything into question. time goes by and I tell myself that I have to spend with the pros. It's an exciting double sporting project and it would be nice to be able to perform in Olympic boxing while turning professional ", told AFP the Toulousain ( 26 years old), confirming information from L'Equipe.

Oumiha, who dreams of ending his adventure as an amateur with a gold medal in Tokyo this summer, during the Olympic Games postponed for a year due to the Covid-19 pandemic, clarified that the contract with Frank Warren should be signed "either at the end of the week or next week".

A first professional fight should be scheduled immediately.

Contacts with Warren, who notably deals with WBC heavyweight champion Tyson Fury and has managed the careers of some big names in British boxing in recent years (Prince Naseem Hamed, Ricky Hatton, Frank Bruno, Amir Khan), go back in September, according to the French.

"We did not set a specific number of fights but he suggests that I move up the rankings fairly quickly, Oumiha explained. The idea would be to have a world championship within 2-3 years. Amateur boxing and pro boxing, these are two different worlds, but if I beat Teofimo Lopez (unified world champion of the lightweight, Editor's note) in Rio, I can also do it pro. But you have to be structured, want to, hurting yourself and not skipping steps. "

Sofiane Oumiha has an impressive track record among amateurs.

In addition to his 2nd place at the Rio Olympics, he was crowned world champion in 2017.

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