National Boxing Championships: Manju Rani starts on a winning note

Living up to expectations, boxer Manju Rani began her campaign on a winning note at the 5th Elite Women's National Boxing Championships. Manju Rani got the better of Orissa's Bhabani Barik 5-0 in her second round match in the 48kg category.

Later, Haryana's Nitu also delivered an equally flawless performance as she beat Rajasthan's Swasti Arya in a one-sided bout in the 48kg category.

The ongoing 5th Elite Women's National Boxing Championships are being held at St Joseph's International School in Hisar, Haryana. The Women's National Boxing Championships are hosted by the Boxing Federation of India (BFI), in association with the Haryana Boxing Sangh.

Manju Rani, who represents the Railway Sports Promotion Board, made the headlines after winning a silver medal on debut at the World Championships in 2019, and was clinical from the start to register an emphatic victory.

Meanwhile, in the second round of the 50kg category, Punjab's Komal and Andhra Pradesh's Ramya Guduru registered hard-fought victories.

While Komal recovered well in time against Madhya Pradesh's Deepa Kumar to win 3-2. Andhra Pradesh's Ramya Guduru defeated Uttar Pradesh's Rinky Kishor 4-1.

Earlier, two-time Asian champion Pooja Rani started her campaign with a comfortable 5-0 win against All India Police's Pinki 5-0.

Pooja, who hails from Bhiwani district, had represented India at the recently concluded Tokyo Olympics.

Top two to be a part of national boxing camp

The gold and silver medallists of the National Championships will earn a place in the national coaching camp. The remaining boxers will be selected on the basis of a selection trials, which will take place after the nationals.

In the selection trials, the bronze medal winners of the National Championships will compete with the boxers representing the second team of the top 3 teams of the last National Championships — Railway Sports Promotion Board (RSPB), Haryana and All India Police.