Amit Panghal aiming for historic gold at World Boxing Championships

"I want to win the gold medal and create history for my country," Panghal told mid-day

Star boxer Amit Panghal will spearhead India's eight-boxer line-up that leave for Russia from New Delhi tonight for the World Boxing Championships (September 7-12). And just like a good leader, he wants to set an example, by attempting to create history for India at the competition.

"India has won four bronze medals at the World Boxing Championships in the past, so I want to aim higher. I want to win the gold medal and create history for my country," Panghal told mid-day after wrapping up his final training session at the National Institute of Sport in Patiala yesterday.

This may be easier said than done considering the 2018 Jakarta Asian Games gold medallist will be participating in his first world event in the 52kg category, where he made his international debut earlier this year at the Asian Boxing Championships in Bangkok. He bagged the gold there and that has spurred him on to excel on the world stage now. "I've done well at the Asian level, but this is my first big test at the world level, so I can't take anything for granted. I have prepared well and watched videos of some of the prominent names in the 52kg category," added the Haryana boxer.

This edition of the world event is not an Olympic qualifier after the International Olympic Committee (IOC) suspended the International Boxing Association (AIBA) from conducting the competition at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, alleging administrative and financial mismanagement. Panghal is a bit disappointed about that but prefers to see the positive side of things. "It would have been great had this been an Olympic qualifier because if I did well, it would have given me ample time to prepare for the Olympics. But on the other hand, this is the perfect place for me to closely observe the competition at the world level in this category, so that I can prepare better when the qualifiers come up. After all, the ultimate aim is always the Olympics," Panghal concluded.

India squad

Amit Panghal: 52kg
Kavinder Singh Bisht: 57kg
Manish Kaushik: 63kg
Duyodhan Singh Negi: 69kg
Ashish Kumar: 75kg
Brijesh Yadav: 81kg
Sanjeet: 91kg
Satish Kumar: +91kg

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