IBA Youth World Championships: Ravina wins gold as Indian pugilists finish dominant campaign with 11 medals

25 member Indian contingent put up strong showing at Youth Men and Women’s World Boxing Championships winning 11 medals including four gold and three silver.

Asian Youth Champion Ravina won India’s final gold medal at the Youth World Championships. She showed tenacity to overcome a slow start in the women’s 63kg final against Megan deCler of the Netherlands. | Photo Credit: Special arrangement

Reigning Asian Youth Champion Ravina showcased splendid tenacity to emerge victorious in her finals bout and added another gold to India’s total medal tally of 11 at the IBA Youth Men’s and Women’s World Boxing Championships 2022 in La Nucia, Spain.

Ravina (63kg) was up against Megan deCler of Netherlands in her finals bout. In spite of not getting off to the best of starts, the Indian pugilist utilised her technical ability and quick movement to mount an impressive comeback against her Dutch opponent. The fiercely contested bout finished in favour of the 2022 Asian Youth gold medallist who won 4-3 by split decision after the bout was reviewed.

In the other final, Kirti (81+kg) went down fighting against the 2022 European Youth champion Cliona Elizabeth D’Arcy of Ireland and secured silver after suffering a 0-5 defeat

.India was a dominant force at the event as the 25 member contingent bagged a total of 11 medals which include four gold, three silver and four bronze medals. Overall, 17 Indians had qualified for the quarter finals of the tournament which was more than any other country at the 2022 edition of the tournament.

The women pugilists’ total tally of eight medals was the highest among all countries at this year’s edition of the championships followed by Kazakhstan (5) and Uzbekistan (4)

.Ravina (63kg), Devika Ghorpade (52kg) clinched the gold, Kirti (+81kg), Bhawna Sharma (48kg) won silver while Muskan (75kg), Lashu Yadav (70kg), Kunjarani Devi Thongam (60kg) and Tamanna (50kg) claimed the bronze medal.

In the men’s category, Youth Asian champs Vanshaj (63.5kg), Vishwanath Suresh (48kg) grabbed gold while Ashish (54kg) attained silver.

This year’s championships in La Nucia witnessed participation of close to 600 boxers from 73 countries.

Indian medallists:

Women:

Gold: Ravina (63kg), Devika Ghorpade (52kg)

Silver: Kirti (81+kg), Bhawna Sharma (48kg)

Bronze : Muskan (75kg), Lashu Yadav (70kg), Kunjarani Devi Thongam (60kg), Tamanna (50kg)

Men:

Gold: Vanshaj (63.5kg), Vishwanath Suresh (48kg)

Silver: Ashish (54kg)