ON THE SIDELINES : 6 Soviet Boxers to Train in Japan

Led by 1988 Seoul Olympic gold medalist Vyacheslav Yanovskii, six amateur boxers from the Soviet Union will train in Japan to turn professional.

Yanovskii, the light-welterweight champion in Seoul, and five others signed a contract with Japan’s Kyoei World Co. They are the first Soviet boxers to sign a contract with a foreign firm. Kyoei President Masaki Kanehira said the six had signed three-year contracts but declined to disclose the amount involved.

Kanehira said the five others are Yurii Arbachakov, the 1989 flyweight world champion; Alexander Miroshnichenko, the 1989 super heavyweight European champion; Vyacheslav Yakovlev, heavyweight bronze medalist in the 1986 world championships; Orzubek Nazarov, 1987 lightweight European champion, and Ramzan Sebiev, the heavyweight bronze medalist in the 1987 world championships.