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India's preparations for the Hangzhou Asian Games are in full swing. The multi-sporting event is scheduled to be held from September 23 till October 8. Recently the Boxing Federation of India announced India's boxing squad, comprising seven male and six female pugilists. The noteworthy boxers of the team include Nikhat Zareen, Lovlina Borgohain, Shiva Thapa, and Nishant Dev, among others.
Boxing squad for the Asian Games 2023 is as follows:
Women's team : Nikhat Zareen, Lovlina Borgohain, Parveen Hooda, Preeti Pawar, Arundhati Choudhary, Jaismine Lamboria
Men's team: Shiva Thapa, Nishant Dev, Sachin Siwach, Narender Berwal, Deepak Bhoria, Sanjeet, Lakshya Chahar
Let us look closely at the boxing squad selected for the Asian Games:
#1 Nikhat Zareen (51kg)
Nikhat Zareen is definitely one of the most promising Indian boxers. This young boxer showed her strength by winning the World Championships 2022 title held in Istanbul and thereafter never looked back. It was like a take-off moment in her boxing career.
Nikhat continued to excel and grabbed the gold medal at the Birmingham Commonwealth Games in August 2022. This year also the 27-year-old pugilist showcased her talent and won the gold medal in the World Championships held in New Delhi. So, she is great form ahead of the Asian Games and is India's strongest bet for a boxing gold.
#2 Lovlina Borgohain (75kg)
Another strong boxer included in the Asian Games squad is Lovlina Borgohain. The 25-year-old boxer has been in amazing form recently. This brilliant pugilist came into spotlight after winning bronze medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.
Thereafter, Lovlina also bagged a gold medal at the 2022 Asian Championship. Apart from that, she won the National Championships last year. Her best performance came this year when she clinched the gold at the World Championships in New Delhi.
#3 Parveen Hooda (57kg)
Parveen Hooda is currently one of the most in-form boxers. The youngster has won several accolades so far which include: bronze at the 2022 World Championships held in Istanbul, gold at the 2022 Asian Championships and gold at the 2019 South Asian Games.
#4 Jaismine Lamboria (60kg)
This 21-year-old boxer showed her brilliance by claiming a bronze medal at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games. Jaismine is an emerging pugilist and will represent India in 60kg weight category at the upcoming Asiad.
#5 Preeti Pawar (54kg)
This 19-year-old boxer is also in the women's squad finalized for the Asiad. In 2021, she clinched the silver medal at the Youth Asian Championships and thereafter in 2022, she added a bronze medal at the Asian Championships.
#6 Arundhati Choudhary (66kg)
Arundhati is another amazing boxer to make her place in the Asian Games team. It is noteworthy that she won a gold medal at the 2021 Youth World Boxing Championships. Earlier, this young pugilist had also won the gold medal at the 2020 Khelo India Games.
#7 Shiva Thapa (63.5kg)
Shiva Thapa's name in the squad comes as no surprise as he has been impressive throughout his career. He not only qualified for the London Olympics at a very young age, but also made it to the Rio Olympics. Shiva went on to win a gold medal at the Asian Championships in 2013 and a bronze medal at the World Championship in 2015.
Thereafter, the 29-year-old boxer performed consistently in the Asian Championships in which he won a bronze in 2015 and 2019, and a silver in 2017, 2021 and 2022. Hence, his inclusion adds more strength to the team.
#8 Nishant Dev (71kg)
Nishant Dev is currently one of the most talented boxers. The 22-year-old showcased his brilliance by clinching a bronze medal at the 2023 World Championships held in Tashkent. He is definitely one to watch out for at the Asiad.
#9 Deepak Bhoria (51kg)
Deepak proved his excellence by claiming a bronze medal at the World Championships held in Tashkent this year. It must be noted that in this tournament he defeated the Tokyo Olympic bronze medalist to enter the pre-quarterfinals.
#10 Sachin Siwach (57kg)
This 23-year-old boxing sensation has also made his place in the Asian Games squad. Sachin grabbed the gold medal at the 2016 Youth World Boxing Championships. Besides, he also won a gold medal at the 2019 South Asian Games.
#11 Narender Berwal (+92kg)
He is among the most prominent boxers of our country. Narender won a bronze medal at the 2022 Asian Boxing Championships and also a gold medal at the 2019 South Asian Games.
#12 Lakshya Chahar (80 kg)
Lakshya is another talented pugilist who has been selected in the men's squad for the Asiad to represent India in the 80kg weight category. It is noteworthy that he has won the gold medal at the National Championships three times.
#13 Sanjeet (92kg)
Sanjeet is one of the strongest pugilists to be selected in the boxing squad. In 2021, he won a gold medal at the Asian Boxing Championships.
With these 13 boxers, the Indian squad at the upcoming Asiad looks formidable. The Asian Games 2023 is also crucial for them as boxing is a qualifying event for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Therefore, our pugilists will aim to excel at the mega event.
