New Delhi, India, May 23, 2024: It will be the last chance saloon for India’s male boxers as they aim for the last available tickets for Paris 2024 at the second World Qualification Tournament which gets underway on Friday, May 24, in Bangkok, Thailand.
India’s male pugilists’ performance has been below-par with none having won quota places for Paris. At the previous world qualifiers in Busto Arsizio, Italy in March, only 2023 world championship bronze medallist Nishant Dev moved past the opening round.
Dev, who will fight in the 71kg category, will make another attempt to qualify in Bangkok and is part of a seven-man squad from India which includes former Asian Games champion Amit Panghal (51kg).
The Bangkok Olympic qualifiers has 51 quota places on offer, including 28 for men and 23 for women, and a boxer will be assured of a Paris ticket after reaching the semi-finals.
“From the Thailand qualifiers, we definitely hope to clinch 4-5 quota places and we are hoping for the best. This time we have a definite chance,” said Indian boxing coach C.A. Kuttappa.
India has only three women qualified for Paris 2024 so far – Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain (75kg), Nikhat Zareen (50kg) and Preeti Pawar (54kg). All three secured their entry to Paris at the Hangzhou Asian Games last year.
India had a fourth female qualified - Hangzhou Asian Games bronze medallist Parveen Hooda (57kg) - but she was recently suspended by the International Testing Agency for a doping whereabouts failure.
India had an unprecedented nine boxers competing at the Tokyo Olympics which yielded only one bronze, won by Borgohain.
Quota places will be on offer across 13 weight classes, six for women and seven for men, at the Indoor Stadium Huamark in Bangkok. The tournament will end on June 2.
Indian Squad in Bangkok
Women: Jaismine Lamboria (57kg), Ankushita Boro (60kg), Arundhati Choudhary (66kg).
Men: Amit Panghal (51kg), Sachin Siwach Jr. (57kg), Abhinash Jamwal (63.5kg), Nishant Dev (71kg), Abhimanyu Loura (80kg), Sanjeet (92kg), Narender Berwal (+92kg).