Mumbai: Living up to the reputation and favourite’s tag, current world champions Alfiya Pathan and Gitika dished out solid performances in their opening rounds at the 4th Youth National Boxing Championships in Delhi Public School, Sonipat. The tournament marked a return of domestic boxing action in the country after more than a year-gap due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Maharashtra's Alfiya (+81kg) outpunched Punjab's Yashasvi Pathania 5-0 in the opening round match and advanced into the quarter-finals. While in the 48 kg, Haryana boxer Gitika dominated her opponent Payal Zala from Gujarat right from the start as the referee declared Gitika as the winner with the RSC verdict in the first round.
Alfiya and Gitika were amongst the seven Indian women boxers who clinched gold medals and scripted history at the Youth World Championships in Poland earlier this year.
The on-going championships is being played with AIBA’s newly-introduced weight divisions, 13 categories in men’s event while 12 in the women’s section.
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Another highlight from the 32 bouts played on the opening day in women’s categories, was Maharashtra’s Mrunal Jadhav who blanked Rajasthan’s Anju 5-0 in the women’s 57kg to make her way into the last-8 stage. Manipur’s Tingmila, who had made the headlines after winning gold in Silesion Boxing Championship in Poland in 2018, also progressed into the women’s 48kg second round with a 3-2 victory against Karnataka’s Lachenbee Thongram.
In the men’s section 60 bouts were played on the opening day of the event where boxers from states and union territories like Haryana, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, Uttarakhand, Tamil Nadu, Ladakh took part.
The tournament will act as the selection tournament as the boxers will be selected for the 2021 ASBC Youth & Junior Boxing Championships which is slated to take place in Dubai from August 17-31.
