Sofia, February 20: Nikhat, Meena win gold medals at Strandja Memorial Boxing. Nikhat Zareen and Meena Kumari Devi became the first Indian women boxers to win gold medals at the Strandja Memorial Tournament in Sofia, Bulgaria on Tuesday.
Zareen, a multiple-time national medallist, claimed a 5-0 win in the 51kg category finals against Filipino Irish Magno, while Devi got the better of Aira Villegas 3-2, also from Philippines, in the bantamweight (54kg) summit clash.
Indian Boxing Federation praised Nikhat , tweeted, Nikhat Zareen was absolutely ruthless in her bout against Magno Irish of the Philippines. With a flurry of punches, the 2-time national champion never allowed her opponent to settle into the match and was declared a unanimous 5-0 winner.
Nikhat dedicates her medal to the martyrs of Pulwama attack.
Nagaland’s Maisnam Meena Kumari collected the second gold medal of the day. She defeated Aira Villegas of Philippines, Meena Kumari’s speed, alertness and resolve helped her pull through 3-2 in the tightly-contested match.
However, Manju Rani (48kg) settled for silver after going down to another Filipino in Josie Gabuco in a split 2-3 verdict. In a commanding performance, Zareen out-maneuvered Magno with a rock solid defence. Although the bout seemed closer than the final score-line, Zareen pulled it off by denying her rival a clear shot.
Devi, who won a bronze medal in the previous edition of the prestigious tournament, bettered her podium performance with a gritty show against Villegas.
The duo became the first set of Indian women boxers to win gold medals.
India had won 11 medals at the 2018 edition, two of them gold, which was also the country's best ever performance at the prestigious tournament.