Paris 2024 Olympics: Lovlina Borhogain loses quarterfinal to China’s Li Qian, misses out on a medal

Paris 2024 Olympics: The Tokyo bronze medallist lost by a 4-1 spilt verdict to the first-seeded pugilist from China.

India’s Lovlina Borgohain during the Paris 2024 Olympics. | Photo Credit: AP

World champion boxer Lovlina Borgohain, who had claimed a bronze medal in 69kg in the Tokyo Olympics, fell to Asian Games champion Li Qian of China 4-1 in a hard-fought women’s 75kg quarterfinal contest at the North Paris Arena here on Sunday.

With Lovlina’s exit, the Indian boxing campaign ended without a medal. The lanky boxer missed a chance to secure a rare Olympic double for herself.

Earlier, India narrowly missed out on a medal following Nishant Dev’s 4-1 loss to Pan American Games champion Marco Verde in a 71kg quarterfinal bout on Saturday night.

The fight between eighth-seeded Lovlina and top-seeded Li took off on expected lines. The Indian fought from a distance using her jabs while the Chinese landed some clean and solid combinations. The power and accuracy in her punches helped Li take the first round with a split 3-2 verdict.

Even though Lovlina, who defeated 2022 World Junior champion Sunniva Hofstad in her opening bout, tried her best, Li maintained an upper hand in a physical second round and managed another 3-2 decision in her favour.

The Chinese, who had prevailed over the Indian in their last two meetings in the Asian Games final and the Grand Prix 2024 final, stepped up aggression in the last round to convince four out of five judges.

Lovlina, who switched to 75kg two years ago and had considerable success in picking up Asian and World titles and an Asian Games silver medal, was disappointed with her ouster before winning a medal. “I fought well and expected to go ahead. I am sad at the outcome. I will analyse where I need to improve,” said Lovlina.

Worlds bronze medallist Nishant, who saw off Ecuador’s seventh-seeded Tenorio Rodriguez in his first fight, got off to a fine start employing his jabs and combinations against second-seeded Verde to win the opening round 4-1 despite being served a standing count.

However, the Mexican, who had lost to Nishant in the 2021 World championships in Belgrade, showcased his explosive game in the next two rounds and ensured a podium finish.