Nikhat Zareen of India won the gold medal in the 52kg division at the Women's World Boxing Championships in Istanbul, Turkey on Thursday, defeating Thailand's Jitpong Jutamas in the fly-weight final. Nikhat therefore becomes the sixth Indian woman to win a gold medal at the World Championships, following Mary Kom, Sarita Devi, Jenny RL, and Lekha KC. Zareen, who is 25, is a former junior young world champion. Nikhat battled brilliantly in the final against her Thai opponent and won the gold medal. The judges awarded the Indian a 30-27, 29-28, 29-28, 30-27, 29-28 victory.
Zareen was in fine form, using her technical prowess and excellent court coverage to deceive her quick-footed opponent. In the opening round, Nikhat impressed all three judges by landing much more punches than the Thai fighter. The second round was more competitive, and Jitpong won it 3-2. With only one judge on her side in the final round, Nikhat went all in and slammed the door in her opponent's face, eventually winning a 5-0 unanimous decision.
After record six-time champion Mary Kom (2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2018), Sarita Devi (2006), Jenny RL (2006), and Sarita Devi (2007), the Nizamabad (Telangana) fighter became the only fifth Indian woman to win gold at the World Boxing Championships.
It was also India's first gold medal since Mary Kom, the boxing legend, won it in 2018.
"Winning a medal at the world's is always a dream and Nikhat could achieve it so early is extremely commendable. We, at BFI, are proud that our boxers have not only made all of us proud but each of their boxing journeys is inspiring for the upcoming generations," BFI President Ajay Singh said.
"On behalf of the Boxing Federation of India, I congratulate Nikhat and bronze medal winners Parveen and Manisha as well as the coaches and support staff for this achievement. Our eight boxers qualified for the quarter-finals which was joint most and shows the strength of Indian boxing," he added.
