Undefeated Icelandic heavyweight to feature in the main event.
The Western world has the strongest presence of any nation in professional boxing. Europe and the Americas have contributed the highest number of fighters in the paid ranks in history.
For this reason, it may surprise you that a Western nation has made boxing illegal in recent times, but that was exactly the case with Iceland.
In 1956, a law was passed that banned professional boxing in Iceland entirely. This happened after a prominent doctor in the country raised concerns over the risk of brain damage that the sport brings, though some people have posited the theory that it was more due to the threat that powerful punchers would have posed to the police.
Either way, for almost 70 years, boxing at the professional level has been completely illegal in Iceland. Though amateur boxing was legalised in 2002, the country has never had a professional contest take place on its soil.
That is set to change next month.
Kolbeinn Kristinsson (19-0, 13 KOs) is one of only two Icelandic male professional boxers in the world, the other being 2-0 welterweight Emin Kadri Eminsson.
Kristinsson is a 6’6″ heavyweight who has fought all across Europe and even made two American appearances. The 37-year-old has actually sparred with the likes of Tyson Fury and Joseph Parker, providing preparation for the world-class players.
Kristinsson will headline Iceland’s first professional card against Sasa Milenkovic (12-1, 11 KOs), a 43-year-old Austrian known as “Bulldozer”.
The card’s four fights will include Norwegia’s Brage Lange (8-0, 8 KOs), the aforementioned Emin Kadri Eminsson, and female Icelandic lightweight Valgerður Guðsteinsdóttir (7-8, 2 KOs).
The show is also set to feature three amateur fights and will be promoted by Nordic Ring, with the presiding commission likely to be a Sweden-based authority.
Kristinsson is only the second Icelandic heavyweight in boxing history, with the first being Skulli Armannsson, who fought once in 2008 when he stopped fellow debutant Caleb Nelson in America. Following the bout, Armannsson never fought again.
More recently, Icelandic strongman Hafþór Júlíus Björnsson engaged in a series of exhibition bouts, with his much-publicised 2022 match against British strongman Eddie Hall marking the end of his boxing campaign.
Kolbeinn Kristinsson will be headlining on the 10th of April at Gamla Bíó in Iceland’s capital of Reykjavik.
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