Eighteen-year-old Argentine boxer Edgardo Nicolás Peralta won the under-19 world title in Budva, Montenegro, on Tuesday, beating Ireland’s Kalib Walshe by unanimous decision to claim his country’s first gold medal at the tournament.
Argentina celebrated a historic first in youth boxing on Tuesday. Edgardo Nicolás Peralta, an 18-year-old from the city of Reconquista in Santa Fe province, was crowned world champion in the under-60-kilogram division at the Under-19 World Boxing Championships in Budva, Montenegro.
The medal is the first gold the country has ever claimed at the event, which is organized by World Boxing, the body that governs international Olympic boxing.
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Peralta closed the tournament with a flawless record. In the final he defeated Irish boxer Kalib Walshe by unanimous decision, the fifth straight victory of a campaign that also saw him beat opponents from Belarus, Romania, Spain and Kazakhstan. His versatility in the ring and a rigorous technical preparation allowed him to dominate each bout and place himself among the elite of his discipline.
Edgardo Nicolas Peralta completes a brilliant campaign in Budva 🇦🇷🔥
The Argentine defeats Ireland’s Kalib Walshe in the men’s 60kg final to become a U19 World Champion 🥇
Watch the finals live and on demand on https://t.co/lb7oSCmW9s 📺#TimeForWorldBoxing #Boxing pic.twitter.com/TO0KiYMtvf
— World Boxing (@RealWorldBoxing) October 27, 2026
First Gold Medal
The triumph carries weight beyond the medal itself. Peralta’s run through five opponents underscored a level of consistency rarely seen from a first-time representative at this stage. Judges scored the final decisively in his favor, confirming the dominance he had shown from the opening bell of the tournament.
His path to the top was built in Argentina’s amateur circuit, far from the spotlight that surrounds professional boxing. The young fighter honed his craft in working-class neighborhoods, relying on daily sacrifice from his family and his immediate circle rather than on institutional backing.
That lack of support nearly cost him the final. The delegation traveled to Montenegro with scarce official assistance and faced severe logistical problems. The scheduled return flight coincided exactly with the time of the gold-medal bout, forcing the team to scramble for a change. The national sports agency (ENARD), refused to adjust the air tickets, according to the reports.
🇦🇷 I Justo cuando Argentina -tras 20 años- se quedó sin ningún campeón mundial profesional (ni hombres, ni mujeres, ni interinos) aparece Nicolas Peralta (69-0) y se consagra -con 18 años recién cumplidos- como el mejor boxeador juvenil en toda la historia amateur del país. pic.twitter.com/W4nsDxEzlv
— CHINGON BOXING 🇦🇷 🇲🇽 (@SweetScienceLat) October 27, 2026
Text reads: “Just when Argentina – after 20 years – was left without any professional world champions (men, women or interim) appears Nicolas Peralta (69-0) and is consecrated – at 18 years old – as the best youth boxer in the entire amateur history of the country.”
No Official Support
The financial barriers and the persistent absence of state backing did not stop Peralta. His family’s everyday effort sustained a career forged far from privilege, and the result on Tuesday vindicated that persistence against what Argentine media have described as official neglect.
The contrast is stark. While the young boxer celebrated on the podium, his delegation had spent the hours before the fight resolving a travel schedule that never accounted for the possibility of an Argentine reaching the final. The episode lays bare the wider conditions facing amateur athletes in Argentina, where talent often outruns the support available to develop it.
Peralta’s gold marks a milestone for Argentine boxing and for the country’s youth sport. It also sends a message about the potential waiting to be unlocked when athletes from popular neighborhoods get a genuine chance to compete on the world stage.
The victory positions Peralta as one of the rising names in international amateur boxing, with the under-19 title serving as a platform toward senior competition. His next steps will likely draw attention from federations and sponsors alike, though the structural problems that almost derailed his final remain unresolved.
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