Konakbayev came to attention of Howard Cosell, and after the Soviet Olympic authorities announced the USSR team wouldn't show up at the 1984 Los Angeles Olympics, where Konakbayev had genuine chances to compete for the gold medal at the welterweight event of the Games, Cosell said:[1]
As for the Soviets, well, they are no longer dominant in boxing, they have a couple of good-ones, one of them a man named Konakbayev.