Vishwanath, Vanshaj, Devika clinch gold at Youth World Boxing

Chennai-born Vishwanath handed India its first gold at the championships after thrashing Ronel Suyom of the Philippines without breaking a sweat in the men's 48kg final.

New Delhi: Living up to their favourites tag, young Indian boxers Vishwanath Suresh, Vanshaj and Devika Ghorpade recorded commanding 5-0 wins to clinch gold at the IBA Youth Men’s and Women’s World Boxing Championships 2022 in La Nucia, Spain.

Chennai-born Vishwanath handed India its first gold at the championships after thrashing Ronel Suyom of the Philippines without breaking a sweat in the men’s 48kg final.

This came after Bhawna Sharma bagged the silver medal in the women’s 48kg category as she conceded a 0-5 loss against Uzbekistan’s Gulsevar Ganieva in the opening match of the day. Ashish (54kg) was the other Indian to finish with a silver medal. He went down fighting 1-4 against Japanese pugilist Yuta Sakai in a thrilling men’s final.

Meanwhile, Devika, who hails from Pune, added a second gold to India’s tally when she dominated England’s Lauren Mackie in the women’s 52kg final.

Afterwards, the Youth Asian champion Vanshaj concluded the day in style for India by winning their third gold. The confident Sonipat-based boxer made light work of Demur Kajaia from Georgia in the men’s 63.5kg summit clash.

India topped the medal count at 11 in the on-going edition of the event, followed by Uzbekistan (10), Ireland (7) and Kazakhstan (7).

This year’s championships saw participation of close to 600 boxers from 73 countries. India’s eight medals in the women’s section is also the highest for any country.

Having already won three gold medals, Ravina (63kg) and Kirti (+81kg) will look to add two more gold to India’s kitty when they fight in the women’s final on the last day of the competition. Ravina and Kirti will be up against Megan deCler of Netherlands and Ireland’s Elizabeth D’Arcy respectively.

Besides three gold and two silver on the penultimate day, India’s tally also includes four bronze medals-coming from Tamanna (50kg), Kunjarani Devi Thongam (60kg), Muskan (75kg) and Lashu Yadav (70kg), who finished their campaigns in the semifinals.