Rooster eyes success in year of the snake

Two-time Olympic gold medalist Zou Shiming is hoping the Water Snake’s luck would slither its way towards him this year when he makes his professional debut on April 6 in one of the undercard bouts of the Brian Viloria-Juan Francisco Estrada title fight.

The Zunyi City-born fighter will be fighting in front of an expected pro-Chinese crowd at the Venetian Casino & Resort in Macau, one of China’s two Special Administrative Regions, the other being Hong Kong.

Shiming, born under the rooster sign in the Chinese zodiac, signed with Bob Arum’s Top Rank Promotions early this year, aiming to be the second Chinese world boxing champion after World Boxing Council minimumweight title holder Ziong Zhao Zhong.

His opponent, however, has yet to be determined. The 31-year-old World Cup of Boxing champion is being trained by Hall of Famer Freddie Roach and Miguel Diaz, and will spar with World Boxing Association and World Boxing Organization flyweight champion Viloria.

Shiming is known to have defeated Harry Tanamor twice in the World Amateur Championships, denying the Filipino the gold in the semifinals of the 2003 edition in Bangkok, Thailand, and in the 2007 finals in Chicago.

Arum hopes to leverage Shiming’s enormous popularity in mainland China to tap into the emerging sports market in the world’s most populous nation. Shiming gained fame after winning Olympic gold in 2008 and 2012 in Beijing and London, respectively.

Zou is an incredible talent who is beloved in the People's Republic of China. We at Top Rank will make every effort to make sure that he has a spectacular career as a professional boxer," Arum told USA Today.

Shiming previously won bronze in the 2004 Athens Games and was a three-time world amateur light flyweight champion in 2005, 2007 and 2011.

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