Boxing
Men's Boxing World C'ships: Shiva Thapa to lead Indian contingent as Amit Panghal misses out
Shiva Thapa will headline the Indian contingent for Men's Boxing World Championships while CWG champion Amit Panghal misses out.
Shiva Thapa (Source: BFI)
The 2022 Commonwealth Games Champion and a 2019 World Championships silver medallist Amit Panghal has been dropped from the Indian squad for the 2023 Men's World Boxing Championships in Tashkent. Veteran Shiva Thapa will lead the Indian contingent, the BFI announced on Saturday.
One of the most improved boxers of recent times, Deepak Bhoria will lead India's challenge in 51 kg replacing Amit Panghal.
Apart from Amit, 2022 CWG medalists Rohit Tokas (67 kg) and Sagar Ahlawat (92+ kg) are other notable absentees from the list. On the other hand, young boxers likes Akash Sangwan (67 kg) and Narender Berwal (92+ kg) have made the cut.
Tokyo OIympian and 2019 Asian Championships silver medallist Ashish Chaudhary will box in the highly competitive 80 kg, while two-time CWG medalist Mohammad Hussamuddin will compete in 57 kg.
Bronze medalist in the 2015 edition of the world championships, Shiva Thapa will look to add another medal to his cabinet after dominating the Asian circuit in the past year.
Strandja Memorial silver medalist Govind Sahani will play in the 48 kg and 2021 World Youth Champion Sachin Siwach will debut in the 54 kg category.
Youngsters Varinder Singh (60kg), Akash Sangwan (67kg), Nishant Dev (71kg), and Sumit Kundu (75kg), who are the national champions in their respective weight divisions will be the others in action for India.
With BFI removing the selection trials, the squad was selected based on an evaluation during the national camp by high-performance director Bernard Dunne and coaches of the national team.
The championship will witness 640 boxers from 104 countries participating.
Indian squad for Men's Boxing World Championships 2023
Govind Sahani (48kg), Deepak Bhoria (51kg), Sachin Siwach (54kg), Mohammad Hussamuddin (57kg), Varinder Singh (60kg), Shiva Thapa (63.5kg), Akash Sangwan (67kg), Nishant Dev (71kg), Sumit Kundu (75kg), Ashish Chaudhary (80kg), Harsh Choudhary (86kg), Naveen Kumar (92kg) and Narender Berwal (92+kg)
