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With just a week to go until the commencement of the world's largest sporting event- the Tokyo Olympics 2020- India has stacked its strongest boxing contingent for the Summer Games.
With Mary Kom leading the pack and Amit Panghal expected to lead the medal tally, all nine boxers who qualified for the Olympics will look to capitalise on their chances of getting a podium finish.
This year is a little different for the Indian boxers. In this squad of nine, few boxers will be witnessing the Olympic craze for the first time. However, it also has veterans like Mary Kom and Vikas Krishan, whom India might see grace the ring at the Olympics for one last time.
With boxing observed as one of the country’s biggest strengths over the years, boxers this year also have the potential to clinch a podium finish at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Let's go through the big names and their chances at the Summer Games.
#1 Amit Panghal (52kg Category): World No.1 boxer Amit Panghal will be marching into the Tokyo Olympics as a top medal favorite in the flyweight division.
He has shown a phenomenal penchant in his last few outings and has stamped his authority on every list that is being made for India's top medal prospects. In his latest outing, Panghal became the first Indian boxer to win a silver medal at the Asian Boxing Championships.
#2 Mary Kom (51kg Category): There is nothing that the legendary Mary Kom has not won in her long and illustruous career. But adding an Olympic gold to her cabinet will complete her journey as a boxer. With her experience being her biggest weapon, the 38-year-old and 2012 London Olympics bronze medallist will enter the Olympics as an absolute favorite to bag a medal.
The six-time world champion settled for bronze after going down to Kazakhstan’s Nazym Kyzaibay with a split decision in the 51kg category at the Asian Boxing Championships held in Dubai. It was her last outing prior to the Tokyo Olympics.
#3 Vikas Krishan(69kg Category): Veteran boxer Vikas Krishan will be making his third Olympic appearance this year. Vikas, who went on a one-and-a-half-year journey of re-evaluation of what's been going wrong for the boxer over the years, is now ready to fire on all cylinders in Tokyo.
His last two outings at the 2012 London as well as 2016 Rio Olympics have not been very fruitful in terms of results. He was knocked out in the preliminary round in 2012, whereas he survived until the quarterfinals in the 2016 Summer Games.
In his last outing at the Asian boxing Olympic qualifiers, Vikas dominated Japan’s Quincy Okazawa 5-0 in the 69kg quarter-final in Amman, Jordan to make an Olympic cut.
#4 Pooja Rani(75kg Category): The middleweight boxer Pooja Rani has made it to her maiden Olympic Games after fighting plenty of highs and lows in her qualification journey. The 2019 Asian Boxing Championship gold medallist is one of the more prominent medal hopes for India at this year's Olympics because of her fireworks inside the rings during her latest outings. Pooja defeated her 18 year-old rival Pornippa Chutee (5-0) in 75kg category at the quarterfinals and also went on to bag a gold in the recently held Asian Boxing Championships.
#5 Satish Kumar(91kg Category): The heavyweight boxer Satish Kumar is all set to outsmart his opponents, when he steps into the ring for his first ever Olympic games. He became the first ever player from India to qualify for the Olympics in the 91kg heavyweight Category after defeating Mongolian boxer Otgonbayer Daivii unanimously at the Asian Boxing Olympic qualifiers. Satish will look to etch his name this time around after he failed to appear at the 2016 Rio Olympics due to an injury.
#6 Simranjit Kaur (60kg Category): Hailing from a boxer's family, the sport has been running in Simranjit's blood ever since her childhood. The national champion and the 23rd President's Cup international boxing tournament gold medallist will look to grab the Olympics' opportunity for a podium finish with both hands.
She qualified for the Summer Games and later settled for the silver medal after losing the final in the 57-64kg lightweight category at the Asian Olympic Qualifiers held in Amman, Jordan.
#7 Ashish Kumar(75kg category): The 26-year-old boxer is all set to make his Olympic debut in the 75kg middleweight category. Ashish, who had tested positive for COVID-19 in March, has doubled his preparation to gain back his strength for the mega event. The 2019 Asian Games silver medallist will look to grab the opportunity and clinch a medal at the Tokyo Olympics.
#8 Lovlina Borgohain (69kg Category): Lovlina secured the Olympic berth in the 69 kg category with a 5-0 win over Uzbekistan's Maftunakhon Melieva in the 2020 Asia & Oceania Boxing Olympic Qualification Tournament. She became the first ever sportswoman from Assam to qualify for the Olympics and would definitely want to taste the Olympic glory.
#9 Manish Kaushik (63kg Category): Commonwealth Games and World Championships medallist Manish Kaushik was the final pugilist to make it through the Olympic cut. Despite his last-round loss after dominating in the first two rounds, Manish ensured himself a win over second seed Harry Garside in the Asian Boxing qualifiers at Amman, Jordan. He now has a chance to to add another chapter to his career by winning an Olympic Medal.
Also read: 10 Indian athletes who can win medals at the Tokyo Olympics
