Opponent injury gives Shakur Stevenson automatic berth in gold medal match

Medal count | Olympic schedule | Olympic news

Shakur Stevenson won’t be leaving Rio with anything less than a silver medal.

The American bantamweight from Newark received a walkover into Saturday’s gold medal bout when semifinal opponent Vladimir Nikitin of Russia had to withdraw due to injury.

Stevenson is the first American boxer to make a final in Rio. He’ll face the winner of Thursday’s other semifinal: A matchup between Cuba’s Robeisy Ramirez and Uzbekistan’s Murodjon Akhmadaliev.

Nikitin’s previous “victory” was over Ireland’s Michael Conlan, a match that drew considerable attention after the Irish boxer went on a memorable rant about amateur boxing judges. Conlan also tweeted at Russian president Vladimir Putin, asking how much he’d had to bribe officials to ensure a Nikitin victory after Conlan believed he’d won.

[Related: Young fan has touching message for Irish boxer Michael Conlan]

No American male boxer has won gold since Andre Ward in 2004, but Stevenson might have his work cut out for him. Ramirez is considered the favorite in the bantamweight division after winning a flyweight gold at the London Games.

Named after the famous late rapper Tupac Shakur, the 19-year-old Stevenson has become a breakout star at these games. He’s a perfect 25-0 in international competition and is expected to join Floyd Mayweather’s team as he transitions to the professional ranks.