Yaroslava Yakushina and Anastasia Belyakova were the only two Russian women to book their Olympic spots with a semifinal victory at the 2016 European Qualification Tournament in Samsun, Turkey, and with a quarterfinal victory at the Women's World Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan, respectively. Meanwhile, Petr Khamukov secured an additional place on the Russian roster with his quarterfinal triumph at the 2016 AIBA World Qualifying Tournament in Baku, Azerbaijan. All of the boxers were cleared for competition one day prior to the opening ceremony. However, Tishchenko's final match and Nikitin's quarterfinal match became controversial, leading to the suspension of the referees in question, with many observers saying that Tishchenko’s and Nikitin’s opponents were robbed. Nikitin was forced to withdraw from his semifinal bout against Shakur Stevenson due to cuts he sustained in his previous bouts; he received a bronze medal.