Lovlina, Parveen and Ankush secure boxing golds for India at Aichi‑Nagoya Asian Games
Lovlina Borgohain, Parveen Hooda and Ankush Panghal each won gold medals in boxing at the Aichi‑Nagoya Asian Games in Nagoya on Friday, October 2, 2026, delivering three victories that strengthened India’s position in the boxing competition.
India’s recent surge in the medal table continued inside the ring as all three Indian finalists won their bouts to add three gold medals and move the country to the top of the boxing medal tally on Friday. The trio’s wins came across different weight categories and contributed to a productive day for the boxing squad at the Aichi‑Nagoya Games.
Lovlina Borgohain, the most experienced of the three, provided the opening gold on her birthday by outworking China’s reigning Asian champion Ziyi Bao in the 75kg final, dominating across all three rounds for a 5-0 victory. Lovlina became only the second Indian woman pugilist after Mary Kom to win an Asian Games gold. “There was a time when I thought of giving up boxing but then decided against it. Today it feels surreal to win a gold here. Being compared to a legend like Mary Kom is a motivation and I never thought I would gift myself and the country a gold, this one’s very special,” Lovlina said.
Parveen Hooda edged out Chen Nien‑chin of Taiwan, the Paris Olympic bronze medallist and current Asian champion, 3-2 in the 65kg final to complete a personal redemption. Parveen had won bronze at the previous Asian Games only to have it taken away because of a whereabouts clause failure ban, and she described the emotional aftermath and recovery in detail: “When the whereabouts failure thing happened, mentally I was shattered. I thought I had to start from zero but then I reset my mind to think that if didn’t make a comeback, I will regret my whole life that one small mistake cost me everything. A that moment I decided that I had to earn back everything I had, with interest,” an ecstatic Parveen said.
The Haryana State government had promised a deputy director’s post for winning gold, a reward Parveen said she kept telling herself about as motivation during the tournament. She spoke of renewed confidence and maturity after her comeback: “This is my second coming and I am stronger than ever before mentally, I am more mature and I handle my things now. I am not dependent on anyone. I have more confidence and belief in my skills. Earlier, I would get nervous if I lost a round; now I feel I can handle anything,” she added.
Ankush Panghal closed the day for India with a 4-0 victory over Korea’s Kim Minseong in the 80kg final, completing a productive run for the boxing contingent. His win came later in the session and capped a set of finals in which India secured multiple podium-topping results.
The Indian boxing team finished its campaign at the Aichi‑Nagoya Asian Games with three gold medals and three bronze medals.