Zou Shiming, China's two-time Olympic gold medalist, has vowed not to let anyone down when he takes on Japan’s seventh-ranked Sho Kimura later this month at Shanghai Oriental Sports Center in his first WBO flyweight title defense.

Zou Shiming. /CFP Photo

The 36-year-old Zou is 9-1 (two KOs) and won light flyweight gold at both the 2008 Beijing Olympics and 2012 London Games.

Sho Kimura. /Paper.cn Photo

Kimura (14-1-2, 7 KOs), 28, however, is in confident mood ahead of the bout. “I had four big wins fighting outside Japan, and also won the WBO Asia Pacific title in Osaka last year.”

“I can’t wait to fight [the match] in China,” declared Kimura during an interview with Boxmob, a Japanese media outlet focused on boxing.

Kimura, who used the term “battle” instead of “competition” during the interview when speaking about the upcoming bout in Shanghai, is thought to have started his boxing career at a similar time to Zou.

Zou, considered to be China’s most successful boxer of all time, made the switch from amateur to professional back in 2012.

Zou Shiming. /CFP Photo

Zou and his team have researched Kimura carefully, noting that he’s a strong boxer who has a very good hook. “I’m not afraid of him though, and I will make every effort to win the match for the country.”

Some senior commentators have expressed concern about such a confrontation between China and Japan being sensitive. However, a big crowd will surely be expected for the tantalizing fight.