Despite having reigning world champions like Nikhat Zareen and Lovlina Borgohain, Indian boxers did not perform as per expectations at the Paris Olympics and had to return without a medal. After Vijender Singh won the historic bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics 2008, Indian boxers were expected to perform well in the Olympics. Four years later, MC Mary Kom won the bronze medal in the London Olympics. Indian boxers could not win a medal in the Rio Olympics 2016, but Lovlina was successful in getting a bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics.
In this scenario, it was expected that Indian boxers would continue their medal winning streak, but their performance was disappointing. Sports experts believed that at least one medal, if not two, could be expected from the six boxers who qualified for the Olympic Games. Two-time world champion Zareen (50kg), Lovlina (75kg) and World Championships 2023 bronze medalist Nishant Dev (71kg) were all considered strong contenders to reach the podium, but when it came to actual competition, So the Indian players seemed to lack the required speed.
Nishant can be considered an exception, as he was deprived of a medal due to a controversial result in the quarter-finals. As far as Zareen and Lovlina are concerned, they were seen struggling in front of their strong rivals. Amit Panghal (51kg) failed to show his previous form. Lovlina, Panghal and Nishant needed just two wins to secure medals. Although Lovlina and Zareen had got a tough draw, but both of them are the current world champions and hence they were expected to overcome such challenges, but both these boxers easily succumbed to their Chinese rivals. Leaned.
Nikhat Zareen was considered a gold medal contender, but she lost to Wu Yu in the second round itself. Lovlina had to face defeat from her arch rival Li Qian of China. Out of the four matches played so far between these two boxers, the Chinese player has won three of them. In the men’s category, Panghal could not showcase his fast and aggressive game against Zambia’s Patrick Chinemba. The Zambian boxer also could not progress beyond the second round. Jasmine Lamboria (57kg) lost to last Olympic Games silver medalist Nesty Petecio. Preeti Pawar (54kg) gave a tough challenge to current world silver medalist Yeni Marcela Arias, but in the end lack of experience came in her way and she had to face defeat.
