GREATER NOIDA: Girl power drove India’s success story at the World Boxing Cup (WBC) Finals here. Seven women boxers — including reigning world champions Minakshi Hooda and Jaismine Lamboria and seasoned Nikhat Zareen — led the country’s gold medal charge at the season-ending tournament, finishing on the top podium with commanding wins.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Not far behind, men’s boxers Hitesh Gulia and Sachin Siwach too shone bright with a gold each to cap off a remarkable campaign for the host nation. India finished the event with nine gold, six silver and five bronze in what turned out to be a ground-breaking show by the home pugilists.As hosts, India entered competitors in all 20 weight categories across men’s and women’s divisions and achieved a perfect medal record.The finals day opened with gold victories for Minakshi (48kg), Preeti Pawar (54kg), Arundhati Choudhary (70kg) and Nupur Sheoran (80+kg) in the first session. In the evening, Nikhat (51kg), Jaismine (57kg), and Parveen Hooda (60kg) in the women’s division, and Sachin Siwach (60kg) and Hitesh Gulia (70kg) in the men’s, delivered commanding performances to secure titles.Some bouts involving Indians on either side of the sessions were scrappy and not entirely convincing. The opponents of Nupur, Parveen, and Hitesh expressed disbelief and unhappiness over the referees’ decisions.With the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028 set to introduce gender parity across weight categories, Indian women’s fine show on the final day highlighted the nation’s rising stature in world boxing.The day started with Minakshi opening the medal rush with a commanding 5:0 win over reigning Asian Champion Farzona Fozilova, showcasing blistering pace and airtight defence, including a stunning left–right combination that set the tone from Round 1. Preeti followed with another emphatic 5:0 sweep, overpowering Italy’s World Championships medallist Sirine Charrabi through constant pressure and clean scoring blows.Arundhati – on a comeback after 18 months – dominated Uzbekistan’s Aziza Zokirova with a decisive 5:0 win built on precise jabs, disciplined defence, and complete tactical control. Nupur edged a cagey 3:2 battle against Uzbekistan’s Sotimboeva Oltinoy, despite the first rounds going in favour of her opponent.The evening’s highlight belonged to Jaismine, who stunned Paris Olympics medallist Wu Shih Yi 4:1 in a thrilling final. Two-time world champion Nikhat overcame the challenge of Chinese Taipei’s Guo Yi Xuan 5:0. Parveen prevailed 3:2 against Japan’s Ayaka Taguchi.Sachin produced a flawless 5:0 win over Kyrgyzstan’s Munarbek uulu Seiitbek, blending accuracy, momentum control, and clean punching. The most dramatic victory of the finals came from Hitesh (70kg), who overturned an early deficit to edge Kazakhstan’s Nurbek Mursal 3:2.The country’s six silvers came through Jadumani Singh (50kg), Pawan Bartwal (55kg), Abhinash Jamwal (65kg), Ankush Panghal (80kg), and Narender Berwal (90+kg) in the men’s section and Pooja Rani (80kg) in the women’s.
