17-member Indian boxing contingent leaves for Strandja Memorial competition
On Friday, a 17-member Indian boxing team, consisting of seven men and ten women boxers, flew to Sofia, Bulgaria, for the 73rd Strandja Memorial competition. The competition will take place from February 18 to February 28, and happens to be Europe's oldest international boxing event.
It's the first exposure tour of the year for Indian boxers. Due to niggles acquired during training, six Indian male boxers were forced to withdraw from the event. The Indian men's team has been trimmed to seven boxers, with the squad consisting primarily of national medalists.
Pooja Rani (81kg), a widowed Asian champion, and Sonia Lather (57kg), who hasn't entirely recovered from a niggle, pulled out of the women's squad, reducing it to ten.
The government will cover the expense of the team's participation in the tournament, according to the Sports Authority of India (SAI). In the previous edition of the Strandja competition, India won two medals: a silver by Deepak Kumar and a bronze by Naveen Boora. The women’s boxers, on the other hand, were not placed on the podium.
SQUADÂ
Elite Women: Nitu (48 kg), Anamika (50 kg), Nikhat (52 kg), Shiksha (54 kg), Meena Rani (60 kg), Parveen (63 kg), Anjali Tushir (66 kg), Arundhati Choudhary (70 kg), Saweety (75 kg), Nandini (81 kg).
Rohit Mor (57kg), Varinder Singh (60kg), Akash (67kg), Sumit (75kg), Sachin Kumar (80kg), Lakshya Chahar (86kg), Narender (92+kg) are among the elite men.