Tough draws for Lovlina Borgohain

Nikhat Zareen, competing in the highly competitive 50kg category, faces a formidable challenge. The unseeded Zareen will start her campaign against Germany’s Maxi Karina Kloetzer in the Round of 32. If she advances, Zareen will likely encounter top seed Wu Yu of China, the reigning 52kg world champion and 50kg Asian Games gold medallist. Zareen’s potential path also includes a possible bout against either Chuthamat Raksat of Thailand or Uzbekistan’s Sabina Bobokulova, both of whom have previously defeated her. Raksat won their encounter in Hangzhou last year, while Bobokulova bested Zareen earlier this year at the Strandja Memorial. Zareen has indicated that she has developed strategies to counter these opponents, but it remains to be seen if these tactics will be effective in the ring.

Lovlina Borgohain, the 75kg world champion and Tokyo Games bronze medallist, is seeded eighth and may face a tough opponent in the quarter-finals. Borgohain’s initial bout will be against Norway’s Sunniva Hofstad. If she advances, she could potentially meet China’s Li Qian, the top seed, who defeated her in Hangzhou last year. However, Borgohain had previously bested Qian at the World Championships in New Delhi earlier in the same year.

In other matches, Jaismine Lamboria (57kg) will face Olympic silver medallist Nesthy Petecio from the Philippines in her opening round. An upset victory could set her up against local favorite and European Games gold medallist Aminia Zidani. In the women’s 54kg category, Preeti Pawar will compete against Vietnam’s Vo Thi Kim Anh in the first round, followed by a potential match-up with world silver medallist Yeni Arias of Colombia, who has a first-round bye.

Among the men, Amit Panghal’s 51kg division journey will commence against Zambia’s Patrick Chinyemba, a bronze medallist from the Birmingham Commonwealth Games and African Games champion. Panghal, who previously defeated Chinyemba in the Commonwealth Games semifinals, may face Thailand’s Thitisan Panmot in the quarter-finals, assuming he progresses. Also in the same pool are Uzbekistan’s Hasanboy Dusmatov, the 2016 Olympics champion, and Kazakhstan’s Saken Bibossinov, a bronze medallist from the Tokyo Games. These two are expected to clash in the quarter-finals.

Nishant Dev (71kg), the other Indian male boxer, appears to have a more favorable draw. As an Olympic debutant, Dev has a first-round bye and will face Ecuador’s Rodriguez Tenorio in his initial bout. If he advances, Dev is likely to meet Mexico’s Marco Verde, the Pan American Games champion, in the quarter-finals.

The boxing events at the Paris Olympics are set to showcase intense competition as Indian boxers navigate their challenging draws in pursuit of Olympic glory.