By Harpal Singh Bedi
Reigning world champions Nikhat Zareen and Lovlina Borgohain will lead the 19 member Indian challenge at the 75th Strandja Memorial Tournament to be held in Sofia, Bulgaria from February 3 to February 11.
The Strandja Memorial Tournament is one of Europe’s oldest international sports competitions.
With the intense competition in presence of around 300 boxers from 30 countries, the tournament will be a great preparation for the Paris Olympics.
Besides Nikhat (50kg) and Lovlina (75kg), Asian Games bronze medallist Preeti (54kg), World Championships bronze medallist Manisha (60kg), Asian Championships bronze medallist Sakshi (57kg) and national champion Arundhati Choudhary (66kg) are also included in the squad to compete in the women’s section of the tournament.
The men’s squad, consists of the 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Amit Panghal (51kg) along with the other national champions including Barun Singh Shagolshem (48kg), Lalit (54kg), Sachin (57kg), Akash Gorkha (60kg), Rajat (67kg), Akash (71kg), Deepak (75kg), Jugnoo (86kg).
Vanshaj (63.5kg), Abhimanyu Loura (80kg), Naveen Kumar (92kg) and Sagar (92+kg) are the other four Indian male boxers who are also part of the squad.
The Indian pugilists finished with eight medals, including three silver and five bronze, in the last edition of the tournament held in 2023.
The draw ceremony will take place later tonight.