Wednesday marked a day of great controversy and triumph for boxing at the 2016 Olympics, highlighted by Kazakhstan'sDaniyar Yeleussinov's gold medal in the men's welterweight (152 lbs) final.Yeleussinov's win was the main event of boxing today, but there were three other matches, including American Claressa Shields knocking off Russia'sYaroslava Yakushina to reach the women's middleweight (165 lbs) semifinals.The other top story of the day was the International Boxing Association announcing that an unspecified number of referees and judges were dismissed following a review of several decisions that were substandard, per A.J. Perez ofUSA Today.In a sport where judging plays such an integral role in the outcome, anything that could call into question the result is a huge black eye that at least the AIBA took steps to address before all of the matches were decided.Here are the results from Wednesday's matches from Rio de Janeiro:Men's Welterweight FinalDaniyar Yeleussinov def.Shakhram GiyasovYeleussinov earned his first Olympic gold medal and Kazakhstan's third of the Rio Games with a unanimous-decision win overShakhram Giyasovin the men's welterweight final. All three judges scored the bout 29-28.The 25-year-oldYeleussinov has been building toward this moment for the last four years after losing in the quarterfinals during the 2012 Olympics. He previously won gold at the 2014 Asian Games and 2015 Asian Championships, as well as a silver medal at the 2015 World Championships.Per Greg Beacham of the Associated Press,Yeleussinov's win also adds toKazakhstan's run of Olympic success:There comes a point in every elite athlete's career when everything crystallizes and they take that next step in their evolution.Yeleussinov could have fallen apart after what happened in London four years ago, but he used that as a learning opportunity. Now that he's just entered his mid-20s, there's no reason he can't dominate this division for a long time to come.Shields Dominates En Route to SemifinalsShields earned a unanimous decision of her own overYakushina, though she was not entirely pleased with her performance.That was a C-minus performance, said Shields, per John Niyo oftheDetroit News. This was her first fight of the Olympics after earning a bye into the quarterfinals, so it's understandable if she didn't feel crisp.Maggie Hendricks ofUSA Today was not quite so harsh when analyzing Shields' effort:Just 21 years old, Shields already made a name for herself in London four years ago when she took home a gold medal in this event. She won gold at the World Championships earlier this year, giving her the inside track to another triumph in Rio.Awaiting Shields in the semifinals will beDariga Shakimova, who also earned a surprise unanimous-decision win overKhadija El-Mardi.El-Mardi earned a bye into the quarterfinals, but she was outpointed for three rounds againstShakimova to get sent home early.The lone stoppage from Wednesday's action came courtesy of France'sEstelle Mossely against Russia'sAnastasia Belyakova in the women's lightweight semifinal.Mossely hitBelyakova with a hook that leftBelyakova with a broken left arm, per Connor Mannion of NBCOlympics.com. The referee was forced to stop the match, giving the win to Mossely and a berth in the gold-medal match against China'sYin Junhuaon Friday.
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