LONDON >> Daniyar Yeleussinov of Kazakhstan ended U.S. Marine Sgt. Jamel Herring’s Olympic boxing aspirations with a 19-9 victory today in their opening light welterweight bout.

Two Cuban boxers also advanced, and the Philippines’ only Olympic fighter won his opening bout in the afternoon session at ExCel.

Herring served two tours of duty in Iraq and even returned to boxing after his infant daughter’s death, becoming a captain of the U.S. team while reaching his first Olympics.

But the Long Island native couldn’t keep up with Yeleussinov, whose aggression and quick hands repeatedly got Herring in trouble during the first two rounds. Yeleussinov mostly spent the third round avoiding exchanges, but Herring couldn’t score enough points for a comeback.