Olympians Sumit Sangwan, Dinesh Kumar win opening bouts at national boxing championship
Sumit Sangwan won by unanimous decision while Asian Games silver-medallist Dinesh Kumar secured a narrow split decision victory in the opening round.
Indian boxers Sumit Sangwan and Dinesh Kumar were some of the big names to win their first-round bouts on the opening day of the men’s national boxing championship 2021 on Wednesday.
The championships are taking place at the Inspire Institute of Sports (IIS) in Bellary, Karnataka and will run till Tuesday. A total of 54 bouts were scheduled on the opening day across seven weight categories.
London 2012 Olympian Sumit Sangwan, representing Haryana, beat Andhra Pradesh’s Harish Prasadula by unanimous decision in the 86kg category.
Sumit Sangwan had bowed out in the first round at the London Olympics.
The day’s other big result was Chhattisgarh's Dinesh Kumar beating Abhishek Shaw of Bengal 3-2 by split decision after a close contest in the 75kg.
Veteran Dinesh Kumar, a 2010 Asian Games silver-medallist, was a part of the boxing contingent at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, where he was beaten in the opening round.
The winners at the national championships will be handed an automatic spot for October’s world boxing championships in Serbia and will also train at the national camp.
Tokyo Olympians Amit Panghal, Manish Kaushik, Vikas Krishan, Ashish Kumar and Satish Kumar have all opted out of the national championships due to a combination of lack of practice and injuries.
This is the fifth edition of the men’s national boxing championships and they will compete in the 48kg, 51kg, 54kg, 57kg, 60kg, 63.5kg, 67kg, 71kg, 75kg, 80kg, 86kg, 92kg, and +92kg weight categories in accordance with AIBA rules.