Chapter 59 Taylor

The match between Link and Peters is over.

The Miami Herald described the match as "tragic" and "shocking". No one expected Link to smash the jaw of "Rock" Peters and end the match by forcing him to surrender.

The result was shocking.

But afterwards, Link was criticized by some public opinion, saying that his way of playing was a bit bloody. In amateur matches, when his opponent was protected by protective gear, he could still smash his opponent's jaw with his fist, which was simply too brutal.

He also got another title - "Destroyer", saying that his heavy punches could destroy all opponents, no matter how strong the opponent's body was, they would be destroyed under his attack.

The sports edition of the official Cuban newspaper Granma also published an article reporting on the incident, with more criticism than praise, believing that the Olympic series was an amateur competition, focusing on exchanges. Link's winning method of KOing his opponent in every battle was "too extreme and unacceptable", and believed that the Olympic Committee and the United States Boxing Association should intervene in the matter and urge Link to correct the way of playing.

Link doesn't care about the criticism from the outside world. It is normal to get injured or hit the opponent in the ring. Boxers will get injured in both professional and amateur competitions.

Some boxers ask to stop the game after being injured to treat the wound and prevent the injury from worsening and affecting future development, such as Rosenil; some are more aggressive and choose to persist, which leads to worsening injuries, such as Peters.

After being injured in the game, whether to continue the game or give up the game is entirely up to personal choice, and the consequences are borne by oneself, not the opponent.

In addition, the Olympic Committee and the Boxing Association have no right to intervene in this matter. Boxing competitions, whether amateur or professional, value the strength of the boxer.

Since boxers are allowed to improve their defense and resistance to blows indefinitely, they must also be allowed to improve their personal defense-breaking and offensive capabilities indefinitely. They cannot be required to make changes just because others have heavy fists and sharp attacks.

'This request is extremely unreasonable, amateur, and absurd, just like asking factories around the world to stop producing axes because the door of their house was broken open by an axe. ’

Afterwards, the magazine “Ring” refuted the commentary article of “Granma”.

——

After the fourth round, the qualifying round entered the semi-finals.

Link drew the Venezuelan dark horse Alva Enriquez.

Lorenzo Aragon drew the opponent of Fernando Vargas of the Mexican team.

After being defeated by Alva in the previous round, Fernando qualified for the semi-finals by defeating Douglas Silva of the Jamaican team and Peters of the Haitian team who gave up the game.

In the first game, Link and the dark horse Alva played. Compared with the hardness and heaviness of ‘Rock’ Peters, the dark horse Alva is a boxer who excels in technology and speed. The speed of attack and evasion is very flexible, and the fighting style is also very tenacious.

Alva also relied on this advantage. After losing in the first round, he won five games in a row and directly entered the top three.

To deal with such a boxer, as long as you can crush the opponent in technology and speed, it is not difficult to win the game. The difficult part is how to KO him.

"Link, the Olympic Committee has sent a message that Alva has voluntarily given up the game, and you will directly advance to the finals."

Link was watching the video of his opponent Alva's game in the hotel, and coach Ed came in excitedly and told him the news that Alva decided to give up the next round.

Alva won the last game against Fernando of the Mexican team, but Fernando's fighting style was too fierce, causing him to injure his ribs and fracture two ribs. If he fights him again, the injury will be more serious.

After careful consideration, they decided to give up the next game.

"Haha, Link, it's because your fighting style is too fierce. Alva saw that Rock Peters was injured by you, and he was scared, so he gave up the game voluntarily."

Anderzej laughed.

"Link must KO his opponent to win every game, and he has done it in every game. In other words, everyone needs to be prepared to be knocked out by you before going on stage. It's scary to think about it."

Jones Foles smiled with a smile.

Link smiled lightly. It was good news that his opponent gave up the match voluntarily. With one less match, he could rest for one more day and prepare more before the match.

After all, the next opponent, Aragon, was more difficult than Peters.

He almost failed to KO Peters. How should he beat Aragon, who was more powerful than him?

Link watched Aragon's video tape more than ten times and still had no idea.

Ding-ling-ling!

The phone rang. It was Taylor's call. Taylor said she had arrived at Havana Airport and asked if he could pick her up.

Link was a little surprised. The last time he called, Taylor said she didn't have time to come. Why did she come again?

He borrowed the key from the boxing team driver and drove a minibus to Jose Marti International Airport.

Jose Marti Airport is 18 kilometers southwest of the center of Havana. It is named after Jose Marti, the leader of the Latin American Liberation Movement. It is the main international and domestic airport in Cuba.

Due to the tense relations between the two countries, the Cuban government has prohibited any US flights from landing at Cuban airports since the 1960s. It was not until the easing of relations between the two countries in recent years that some restrictions were relaxed, allowing some US groups to travel to Cuba. However, only Miami, New York and Los Angeles airports have opened flights to Cuba.

Link drove to the airport's T3 international building and saw Taylor, who had not been seen for a long time, in the lounge area.

She was wearing a white printed T-shirt, blue jeans, and a pink baseball cap. She was tall and pretty, with a guitar case hanging on her back, which made her stand out in the crowd.

There was also a middle-aged man in a wheelchair and a female assistant who was talking on the phone.

"Hey, Taylor!"

Link took off his sunglasses and waved.

"Link!"

Taylor waved happily, ran from the crowd, and threw herself into his arms with a smile.

Link smiled and hugged the girl gently.

"You seem to be cooler."

Taylor looked up and blinked, looking at his face and smiled.

Link looked at the girl's beautiful face, blue fox eyes, golden bangs, and pretty smile. She seemed to be more beautiful than before. He held her in his arms, and his nose was full of her fragrance.

"You are also more beautiful."

Link smiled.

"Taylor, don't run so fast. There are many thieves here."

The middle-aged man rolled his wheelchair and followed the crowd. The man was in his forties, wearing a casual suit, with a refined appearance and a slightly bald head. He also had the tolerance of a middle-aged man.

Link let go of the girl in his arms and looked at the man in the wheelchair, "Who is this gentleman?"

"This is my father. He suddenly became paralyzed the night before yesterday. My mother asked me to take care of him in the hospital, but I promised you to come to watch the game and I couldn't break the promise. I thought about it again and again, and suddenly I came up with a good idea. Why can't I bring him along? It just so happens that he also likes to watch boxing matches, right, Dad?"

Taylor took his arm and looked at Mr. Swift and smiled.

Link looked at the father and daughter in confusion. The daughter brought her paralyzed father to watch the game? The father also agreed?

Mr. Swift was a little embarrassed. The day before yesterday, he was forced to agree to his wife's proposal and pretended to have back pain and couldn't get up. His wife was worried that it was just a small problem of back pain and she couldn't keep her daughter, so she exaggerated his condition and said he was paralyzed.

Taylor was very sad when he found out and said he would find the best doctor to cure him.

He couldn't bear to see Taylor sad, so he told her that he was fine, it was just a small problem and he would be fine in two days.

Taylor asked him if he was really fine?

Mr. Swift said he was really fine.

After the doctor examined him, he said there was no big problem, it was just temporary paralysis, and he would be fine after a few days of rest.

Mrs. Andrea asked Taylor to stay in the hospital to take care of him and not run around.

Taylor took care of him for a long time, and suddenly proposed to take him to Havana to watch the boxing match.

Mr. Swift didn't want to agree at the time, but he saw that Taylor was in a bad mood, so he agreed without any reluctance, and then followed Taylor from Los Angeles thousands of miles away to Havana, the capital of Cuba, and felt like a dream.

"Mr. Swift, welcome to Havana to watch my game, I hope it won't affect your treatment."

Link bent down and stretched out his hand and said.

"It's okay. It won't delay you."

Mr. Swift reached out and shook his hand. At the same time, he looked at Link and found that he was wearing an ordinary T-shirt and jeans. He had a mild temper and spoke politely. He didn't look like a bad person.

"Link, this is my assistant Emily."

Taylor pointed to the girl pushing the wheelchair and said.

The woman was in her twenties, wearing a casual dress. She was on the phone. After hearing Taylor's introduction, she nodded to Link and whispered to Taylor on the phone: "It's Annie's call. She heard that you secretly brought Mr. Swift to Havana. She was very, very angry."

"Mrs. Andrea didn't know you were coming to Havana?" Link asked in surprise.

"She was too busy, so I didn't tell her."

Taylor winked playfully, her lips curled up slightly. She took the phone and called out "Mom" carefully. An angry female voice immediately came out of the microphone, "Taylor, I asked you to take care of your dad at home, but you took him abroad to watch boxing matches? Are you crazy?"

Taylor held the phone away from his ear, and when the voice in the microphone stopped, he smiled and said, "Mom, don't worry. I asked the doctor, and the doctor told me that Dad's illness is mainly caused by psychological problems. It's best to walk outside more and get some sun. He will be fine in a few days."

"What nonsense are you talking about? Your dad is paralyzed, and you want him to walk outside more?"

The voice on the phone was a little hysterical.

Taylor covered her ears with her hands and handed the phone to Mr. Swift, "Dad, come and tell Mom that you are voluntary."

Mr. Swift spread his hands. How could a paralyzed person like me go out voluntarily? But this was his daughter's request, so he could only take the phone and speak softly into the microphone for a while.

Link saw the sweat on Mr. Swift's forehead and secretly sighed that being a man is not easy, and being a man for a strong woman is even more difficult.

The group was delayed at the airport for a few minutes. Link drove Taylor, Mr. Swift, and his assistant Emily to the hotel. Because Mr. Swift and Emily always stayed by Taylor's side, Emily had to follow her wherever she went, so Link and Taylor didn't have many opportunities to be alone together.

——