Women's World Boxing Championships: Nikhat, Lovlina crowned world champions
New Delhi, Mar 26: Nikhat Zareen continued to grow in stature as she added a second World title to her swelling trophy cabinet while Lovlina Borgohain broke her 'bronze jinx' to claim her maiden gold medal at the marquee event here on Sunday.
Nikhat upstaged two-time Asian champion Vietnam's Nguyen Thi Tam by a 5-0 verdict to take the light flyweight title infront of a packed KD Jadhav Indoor Hall.
Two-time bronze medallist Lovlina, on the other hand, defeated Caitlin Parker of Australia 5-2 to win her maiden World title.
With the win, Nikhat becomes only the second Indian after the legendary MC Mary Kom to win the title of the prestigious tournament twice.
"I am very happy that I have become a world champion for the second time, especially in an Olympic category," Nikhat, who won the 52kg title last year, said after her bout.
The first bout of the day between the two Asians was an exciting affair that went down to the wire.
"Today's bout was the toughest for me, she is an Asian champion and my next target is Asian Games and I might meet her, so I will work hard," Nikhat said.
"It was a roller coaster bout, she got warning, I got warning, she got count so did I. But I went all out."
Nikhat, who has moved down from her preferred 52kg, looked tentative at first as Tam was the first one to attack. But after a few seconds, the home favourite leapt forward to attack. She then landed two right hooks, followed by straight jabs.
Tam was handed a penalty point for clinching further, tilting the result in Nikhat's favour as she took the first three minutes by an unanimous verdict.
But Tam made a strong comeback as she launched into attack mode. The southpaw landed several punches, forcing Nikhat to play with her head down that earned her a penalty point. The Vietnamese managed to take the round 3-2.
In the final three minutes, both boxers went for broke and attacked each other relentlessly.
If Nikhat's powerful right cross forced the referee to give Tam the eight count, Tam's jab compelled the referee to do the same to the Indian.
"For me, this is the first major competition in this category after the Commonwealth Games, which did not have much competition.
"But here, countries from all over the world competed and had back-to-back matches also, my body was a bit slow in some matches. I will learn from these experience and try to become stronger," Nikhat, who has already qualified for the Asian Games, said.
On Saturday, Nitu Ghanghas (48kg) and Saweety Boora (81kg) were crowned world champions in their respective weight categories.
Hosts India matched their best-ever performance in terms of gold medals.
India had won four gold in the 2006 edition at home which was also the country's best ever performance with a haul of eight medals, including a silver.
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CM Yogi invites Singapore's Global Indian Schools to Lucknow
Singapore (PTI): Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath has invited Singapore-based Global India International School (GIIS) group to set up its model in Lucknow.
The visiting Chief Minister appreciated GIIS as a school modelled on the values of Excellence and Skills upgradation.
He invited the school group to set up its model in Lucknow during his address to the Indian diaspora.
Yogi observed this and encouraged GIIS to continue on this path and bring this excellence to Lucknow.
"We are humbled by his invitation and will definitely take steps in the right direction," said Atul Temurnikar, chairman and co-founder of the Global Schools Group, the parent of GIIS and 64 international campuses across major Asian capital cities as well as the United Kingdom.
"GIIS has always been an innovative organisation where the student is the focal point. Our goal is to bring the best education to every child, and an up-and-coming Uttar Pradesh can be our next step in that direction,” Temurnikar told PTI on Tuesday.
The Group, which has 64 international campuses, hosted the Chief Minister Adityanath at its One World International School campus for dialogue and interaction with the Indian diaspora on Monday evening.
Temurnikar noted that it was a meaningful dialogue on the state’s expanding investment landscape after hosting 1,500 Indians based in Singapore at the interaction.
“Uttar Pradesh has a promising future under his leadership, which is evident from the state’s strong focus on infrastructure, industry, and governance. It is presenting significant opportunities for global collaboration, he said.
“The success of this evening (interaction) reflects the growing interest within the Indian diaspora in contributing to India’s economic growth and long-term development,” added Temurnikar.
