Wondering who will qualify for the Paris Olympics, we have you covered.
MENS:
51kg(4 Quotas):
Amit Panghal has probably got the the most favorable draws out of all the Indian men’s boxers competing at the tournament.
A bye in the 1st round,followed by a relatively easy Round of 32 match.
His toughest challenge will be in the Round of 16 facing either Kiran McDonald (GBR) or Kim In Kyu(KOR).
Amit has beaten both the boxers convincingly in the past,so expecting him to come out on top this time as well. It should be a straightforward path to the semis for Amit after that, baring any big upsets.
Amit couldn’t have asked for a better draw than this.
Chances | Very Bright
57kg(3 Quotas):
The 57 kg category is pretty even with no major contenders for the quotas, which means this can be anyone’s game.
At the time of writing,Sachin Siwach has already streamrolled past his 1st round Opponent with an Unanimous Decision win.
Expecting him to make his way to the quarter finals where he could face a strong opponent in Owais Harris Allan(GBR)/Kim Hyungseung (KOR).
One disadvantage for Sachin is that his category offers only 3 quotas, so he would have to play an extra match atleast to guarantee the Paris ticket.
So in this case if he can get past Owais/Kim, he will most probably be facing tough boxers like Tokyo Silver medallist Carlo Palaam(PHI)/Jose Luis Dos Santos(DOM)/Yousuf Iashash(JOR)/ Shukur Ovezov(TKM).
While Sachin is a very good boxer in himself,it can prove quite a bit of a task for him to make his way out of this.
Chances : Tricky
63.5kg(5 Quotas):
Abhinash Jamwal replaced veteran Shiva Thapa in this category,who failed to win it in either of the two chances that he got.
The 63.5kg category offers 5 quotas which is a plus, but not expecting Abhinash to make it to the later rounds unless he pulls out some unexpected performance.
Chances : Very Difficult
71kg (5 Quotas):
India’s best performer at the 1st boxing Olympic Qualifier, Nishant came agonizingly close to sealing the Olympic spot last last time, and will look to close it this time around.
His category has 5 quotas and Nishant will most likely take one of it if he can get past Nurmuhammedov Bayramdurdy (TKM)/ Otgonbataar Byamba Erdene(MGL) in the second round.
Bayramdurdy especially came close to beating World champion Aslanbek Shymbergenov in the 1st qualifier and would be a real challenge for Nishant to overcome.
A straightforward path to the quota after that, if he can get past the second round.
50/50 chances for Nishant to take it from here.
Chances : Bright (50:50)
80kg (3 Quotas):
Abhimanyu has a tough opponent in Kristiyan Nikolov(BUL),in the 1st round itself and even if he manages to pull off a win here.
He is very unlikely to get past Kelyn Cassidy of Ireland in the next round, unless he pulls out a big upset.
Chances : Tricky
92kg(4 Quotas):
Sanjeet has been a staple for India at this category for quite some time now.
The biggest moment of his career came in 2021 where he beat Rio Olympic silver medalist Vassily Levit of Kazakhstan in the Asian Championship final to win gold.
He hasn’t quite been able to replicate the same level of performance since then, and the draws here also aren’t any better ,with Sanjeet getting a hell of a tough draw.
He has got a Bye in the opening round but with boxers like Cuban born former World champion and Olympic medallist Alfonso Dominguez(AZE) & World championship medalist Julio Castilo Torres(ECU) in his quarter not expecting Sanjeet to make it any further than the pre quarter finals.
Chances : Very Difficult
+92 kg(4 Quotas):
Narender Berwal will be representing India at the Super heavyweight category. He is expected to atleast make it to the quarter finals based on the draws, where he might face World championship silver medalist Fernando Arzola of Cuba.
Arzola had beaten Narender convincingly in their previous meeting at the world championships last year, expecting no change in the result this time around as well.
Chances : Tricky
WOMENS:
57kg(4 Quotas):
The suspension of Parveen Hooda was a big blow with India loosing the 57 kg Quota plus the Asian games medal as well.
Jaismine Lamboria has been tasked for the quota recovery on an urgent basis,but not sure exactly how well she could fare in a category which she doesn’t usually competes in.
The draws aren’t particularly tough,so Jasmine might have a chance if she does really well. Expecting Elise Glynn(GBR) to make it from this quarter.
Chances : Bright
60kg (3 Quotas):
Ankushita Boro has moved down to the 60kg category from the usual 66s, so it can be a bit difficult to predict how she would fare in the new weight category, much like Jasmine.
European medalist Agnes Alexiusson (SWE),Former Asian Champion Rimma Volossenko (KAZ), Miroslava Jedinakova(SVK), Ana Starovoitova(LTU) and Ayaka Taguchi(JPN) are some of the tricky boxers in the half which Ankushita might have to deal with.
The 60kg category offers only 3 quotas,so she will have to play an extra match atleast to secure the ticket.
Chances : Tricky
66kg(4 Quotas):
Arundhati Chaudhary has got a bye in the opening round but will face a very tricky opponent in Stephanie Pinerio(PUR) in the next round.
European bronze medalists Tamara Radunovic(MNE) ,Jessica Triebelova(SVK) & 2023 world championship medalist Camilo Bravo(COL) are some of the other challengers in her quarter but expecting Arundhati to make it if she manages to overcome the second round hurdle.
Chances : Bright
So all in all,hopes can be pinned on Amit Panghal,Nishant Dev and Arundhati Chaudhary to secure the Paris Olympic Quotas for India.
Sachin Siwach can prove to be a dark horse despite of the difficult draw that he has been handed with.
Nishant & Arundhati will have to deal with very tricky opponents early on,but they have a pretty straightforward path after that.
On paper Amit looks like the easiest quota,but we never know how he would perform given that he hasn’t been in such pressure situations since quite some time.
On top of that the refereeing & judging in boxing has been notoriously infamous as well for it’s subjective nature. So fingers crossed.
Credits Taylor O’Higgins
Written by Deep
