New Delhi, May 31, 2021: Indian boxer Sanjeet put up a solid show against the three-time Asian champion Vassiliy Levit in the men's 91kg final to hand country its second gold at the 2021 ASBC Asian Championships in Dubai on Monday (May 31).
Sanjeet managed a convincing 4-1 victory against the Rio Olympic silver medallist Kazkhak boxer as the Indian contingent concluded their successful campaign with an unprecedented 15 medals, including two gold, five silver and eight bronze at the championships which is jointly hosted by the Boxing Federation of India (BFI) and UAE Boxing Federation. On the other hand, Amit Panghal (52kg) and Shiva Thapa (64kg) ended with silver after suffering defeats in their respective finals.
On Sunday Pooja Rani (75kg) had secured India's first gold at the event. Seasoned campaigner Mary Kom (51kg), Panghal, Thapa, Lalbuatsaihi (64kg) and Anupama (+81kg) grabbed silver medals. However, eight boxers-Vikas Krishan (69kg) Simranjit Kaur (60kg), Lovlina Borgohain (69kg), Jaismine (57kg), Sakshi Chaudhary (54kg), Monika (48kg), Saweety (81kg) and Varinder Singh (60kg)-returned with bronze at the championships as the 19-member Indian contingent ensured the country's best-ever show surpassing the previous highest of 13 medals achieved during the 2019 edition in Bangkok.
Asian Boxing Championships: Pooja Rani finishes off in style to clinch second successive gold
"This has been a challenging year for all of us and despite all the uncertainties our boxers had to undergo, it is absolutely heartening to see them ending the Asian Championships campaign with 15 medals including 2 golds and some close decisions that of Amit Panghal and Mary Kom in the finals. Our boxers have yet again ensured a record-breaking feat and I am extremely proud of each one of them," BFI President Ajay Singh said.
"These performances I am sure will motivate all our boxers to put more efforts ahead of the Olympics and help realise the Mission 2021 by winning medals in Tokyo," he further added.