Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain and reigning world champion Nikhat Zareen lived up to their favourites tags to register contrasting wins to reign supreme in their respective categories at the 6th Elite Women’s National Boxing Championships in Bhopal on Monday.
Borgohain is managed by IOS Sports and Entertainment, whose COO is Delhi-based Rahul Trehan. Four other IOS-managed players shone in the championships. Shiksha Narwal won a gold medal, while Ankushita Boro, Anamika Hooda and Simranjit Kaur picked up silver medals.
Meanwhile, the star-studded Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) lifted the team trophy with 10 medals.
Assam’s Borgohain eased past Arundhati Choudhary of the Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) with a 5-0 win in the 75kg category.
Zareen, on the other hand, faced a stiff challenge from RSPB’s Anamika in the 50kg gold medal match before the 26-year-old Telangana pugilist defended her crown with a 4-1 win.
Another highlight of the day was Manju Rani, who led the dominance of the RSPB on the final day. The 2019 World Championships silver medallist handed the RSPB its first gold after outpunching Tamil Nadu’s S Kalaivani 5-0 in the 48kg final.
Shiksha (54kg), Poonam (60kg), Shashi Chopra (63kg) and Nupur (+81kg) were the other gold medallists for the RSPB, which also bagged three silver and two bronze medals.
Madhya Pradesh, with one gold, two silver and five bronze, and Haryana (two gold and two bronze) claimed the second and third positions, respectively.
Manipur’s young boxer Sanamacha Thokchom Chanu, who won a gold medal at the 2021 Youth World Championships, also put up an impressive show to secure the title in the 70kg by beating Madhya Pradesh’s Shruti Yadav 3-2 in the thrilling final.
Haryana’s Manisha (57kg) and Saweety (81kg), SSCB’s Sakshi (52kg) and Madhya Pradesh’s Manju Bamboria (66kg) also clinched gold medals in their respective categories at the prestigious tournament, which witnessed the participation of 302 boxers fighting in 12 categories.
The Union Minister for Youth Affairs & Sports and Information & Broadcasting, Anurag Singh Thakur, presented the medal to the players along with officials from the Boxing Federation of India officials.