Mary Kom to make competitive debut in 51kg at India Open
NEW DELHI: London Olympic bronze medallist Mary Kom will make her competitive debut at home in 51kg in the second edition of the India Open boxing tournament, to be held in Guwahati from May 20-24.
With Olympic qualification round the corner, India Open will witness 35 men and 37 women boxers from the country vying for glory, even as close to 200 pugilists from 16 boxing powerhouses will participate in the USD 70,000 tournament. Mary Kom had opted out of the Asian Championships last month in order to prepare for the World Championships as the event will serve as good preparatory ground for Olympic qualification.
“I have been preparing well for 51kg category. Having got a real hand idea of the competition in this class in Germany, I am ready to give my best at this tournament and test myself ahead of the World Championships,” said Mary Kom, who led six Indians to gold in the last edition in Delhi.
Keeping in mind the approved weight categories for Olympic qualification, some of the Indian pugilists have changed their weight divisions.
After her stunning performance at the Asian Championships, where she became the first Indian to win a gold in 81kg, Pooja Rani has gone back to her original weight category of 75kg.
Assam’s Bhagyabati Kachari too has made a similar change while Asian Championships bronze medallist Manisha Moun will be fighting it out in 57kg for the very first time.
Assam’s Bhagyabati Kachari too has made a similar change while Asian Championships bronze medallist Manisha Moun will be fighting it out in 57kg for the very first time.
Simranjit Kaur, a silver medallist at the continental tournament in 64kg, has switched to 60kg and will be competing with former world champion Sarita Devi, who added her eighth Asian medal this year.
While the six-time world champion will be India’s biggest medal hope yet again, Amit Panghal (52kg) will be looking to continue his dominance after conquering the Asian Championships gold.
Assam’s Shiva Thapa (60kg), who created a record by winning medals in four consecutive Asian Championships, will be aiming to impress the home crowd, and so will Ankushita Boro (64kg), a gold medallist at the 2017 World Youth Championship. 2017 World Boxing Championships bronze medallist Gaurav Bidhuri (56kg) will be another of the big medal bets from India.
In the upcoming edition, the gold medallists will get richer by USD 2,500, the silver medallists will receive USD1,000 for their exploits as the countdown for the tournament begins.