Ismail Sillakh was born in
Zaporizhia, then he moved with his family to Industrial city of
Mariupol (one of the most important port cities in Ukraine) His parents — Mohammad of
Sierra Leone and Natalya, a Ukraine native—met in college and had no particular connection to boxing but he took up the sport at a local recreation center at age seven and quickly discovered that he had the athletic ability to excel at it. In Mariupol he went to the boxing club of City's Metal Construction Factory of the name of
Lenin. He was trained by one of the best city's boxing coaches. In Ismayl's career has played big role his old brother Adjick Sillakh. Adjick Sillakh was for years one of the best masters in Ukrainian amateur boxing, Ismayl gained good experience by boxing with his older brother Adjick. He began competing at age nine and was recognized as one of Ukraine’s better amateurs a few years later before establishing himself as one of Europe’s premier open-class boxers. Ismayl Sillakh had been a world-ranked amateur for two years going into the
2007 World Amateur Boxing Championships in
Chicago where he lost a close and spirited slug-fest to the more mature
Christopher Downs.
Amateur highlights Amateur Record: 302-16 2001 (October 11–21) Gold Medalist World Cadet Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan, boxing as a Welterweight (67 kg): • Round of 16 - Defeated Robert Blazo (Slovakia) • Quarterfinal - Defeated Rodriguez (Cuba) • Semifinal - Defeated
Artur Beterbiyev (Russia) • Final - Defeated
Elchin Alizade (Azerbaijan) 2005 (November 13–20) Silver Medalist World Championships in Mianyang, China, boxing as a Middleweight (75 kg): • Round of 32 - Defeated
Nabil Kassel (Algeria) RSCI • Round of 16 - Defeated Donatas Bondorovas (Lithuania) RSCI 1 • Quarterfinal - Defeated Mamadou Diambang (France) RSCO • Semifinal - Defeated
Mohamed Hikal (Egypt) 28-22 • Final - Lost to
Matvey Korobov (Russia) RSCO 2 2006 (July 14–23) Silver Medalist European Championships in Plovdiv, Bulgaria, boxing as a Light-Heavyweight (81 kg): • Round of 32 - Defeated David Tsiklauri (Georgia) RSC 1 • Round of 16 - Defeated Andrey Miruk (Belarus) RSCO 2 • Quarterfinal - Defeated
Imre Szello (Hungary) RSCI 1 • Semifinal - Defeated Constantin Bejenaru (Romania) RSCO 3 • Final - Lost to
Artur Beterbiyev (Russia) 23-34 ==Pro==