Reigning world champion Gitika dished out a solid performance in the opening round of the women’s 48kg at the Youth National Boxing Championships, dominating her opponent Payal Zala from Gujarat as the referee stopped the contest in the first round on Sunday.
The tournament, being organised at Delhi Public School, Sonipat, marked the return of domestic boxing action after more than a year’s gap due to Covid-19 pandemic.
Gitika was amongst the seven Indian women boxers who clinched gold 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 and 12 in the women’s section.
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 48kg second round with a 3-2 victory against Karnatak’s Lachenbee Thongram.
In the men’s section, 60 bouts were played on the opening day.
The fourth edition of Youth Men’s & Women’s National Championships will go on till July 23, while the third edition of the Junior Boys’ National Championships and the fourth edition of Junior Girls’ National Championships are scheduled from July 26 to 31.
The tournament will serve as the selection tournament for the 2021 ASBC Youth & Junior Boxing Championships, slated to take place in Dubai from August 17-31.
