On Sunday, March 8, Asian champion Pooja Rani (75kg), alongside Vikas Krishan (69kg) and Lovlina Borgohain (69kg) become the first three Indian boxers to have qualified for the Tokyo Olympics scheduled this year after getting to the semifinals of continental qualifiers.
Apart from Rani, Krishan and Borgohain, the other two boxers who have booked their birth in the Olympic games include Satish Kumar and Ashish Kumar. Rani defeated Thailand's Pornnipa Chutee 5-0 while had a tough time against the Asian silver-medallist Sewonrets Okazawa from Japan before the two won & booked their slots in the semis.
“I had never fought against this girl before today, and honestly, I was a bit scared. I had told my coaches about it before the bout. They instilled confidence in me and I could pull off a one-sided result. I am happy,” speaking of her victory 29-year-old Rani said.
Further, in the evening session, two-time world bronze-winner Lovlina Borgohain achieved an easy victory against Uzbekistan's Maftunakhon Melieva, reserving a place for herself in the approaching Olympics games.
"I managed to execute whatever I had planned. I wanted to fight from a distance and counter-attack, which I could do. Just qualifying is not enough, I want to now win a gold medal," said Lovlina.
Vikas Krishan is making a comeback after the 2016 Rio Olympics getting through with a serious back injury. The upcoming season of Olympics is scheduled to be held in Tokyo only despite the severe outbreak of Coronavirus. Serious health and safety measures are to be taken by the authorities to deal with the outbreak.
