Aichi-Nagoya: Indian boxer Lovlina Borgohain celebrated her Birthday in style on Friday by winning gold at the Asian Games and becoming only the second Indian woman boxer to win a gold medal at the continental event after the legendary MC Mary Kom.
In the closely-contested women’s 75-kg final, the 29-year-old Indian boxer defeated China’s Ziyi Bao 5-0 to finally add the Asian Games gold to the silver she won at the previous edition.
Lovlina had reached the final in Hangzhou, but lost to another Chinese boxer, Li Qian. The gold medal had eluded her at the Commonwealth Games earlier this year as well.
She made a confident start to the final, edging the opening round 3-2 on the judges’ scorecards. Bao responded with an aggressive approach in the second, forcing Lovlina into a more defensive mode as the two boxers engaged in a series of exchanges in the middle of the ring.
Lovlina remained composed though and finished the round strongly. She won it 4-1 to stretch her overall advantage to 2-0 heading into the final round.
The Indian boxer went on to produce another controlled performance in the third, winning the round 4-1 to complete a comprehensive 5-0 verdict and claim the biggest title of her Asian Games career.
The victory was particularly significant given the quality of opposition she had overcome on her way to the final, as reported by The Times of India.
She edged past reigning 70kg world champion Natalya Bogdanova of Kazakhstan 3-2 in the semis, in another closely fought contest.
Lovlina had struggled to find her rhythm in the opening round against Bogdanova and went behind 2-3 on the judges’ cards. She changed gears in the second, becoming more aggressive and landing cleaner punches to dominate the round 5-0.
Bogdanova came forward again in the decider, while Lovlina relied on her defence and counter-attacks. The Kazakh edged the round 3-2, but Lovlina’s advantage from the second round proved decisive.
She secured the split-decision victory after three of the five judges scored the bout in her favour, booking her place in a second successive Asian Games final.
That made Lovlina the first Indian woman boxer to reach back-to-back Asian Games finals. Her gold on Friday now puts her alongside Mary Kom, who won the women’s flyweight gold at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon.
India’s boxing campaign has already surpassed its medal tally from Hangzhou. The country had won four medals at the 2023 edition, including one silver and three bronze. This time, Indian boxers have already secured six medals, with two more gold-medal opportunities remaining on Friday.
Parveen Hooda will fight for gold in the 65kg category, while Ankush Panghal will contest the 80kg final later in the day.