Priya, Lovlina storm into semis as India’s boxers continue to assure medals

Priya Ghanghas and Lovlina Borgohain

NEW DELHI: India’s boxing campaign continued to gather momentum at the Asian Games 2026 as Priya Ghanghas and Lovlina Borgohain powered into the semifinals on Monday, assuring the country of two more medals in the ring.

The duo’s victories added to an already growing list of Indian boxers who have reached the last four, underlining the sport’s contribution to India’s medal haul in Aichi-Nagoya.Lovlina, the Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist, produced a commanding 5-0 unanimous-decision victory over South Korea’s Seong Suyeon in the women’s 75kg quarterfinal. The win guaranteed the Assam boxer at least a bronze medal and a second successive Asian Games podium finish after her silver at Hangzhou in 2023.

Priya followed with another 5-0 victory, overcoming Tajikistan’s Mijgona Samadova in the women’s 60kg quarterfinal to book her place in the last four.Asian Games Full Coverage | Medal Tally | Schedule

Lovlina assures second successive Asiad medal

Competing in her first bout of the tournament, Lovlina made an aggressive start against Seong, repeatedly using her jab-cross combination to unsettle the South Korean. Although Seong attempted to use her height advantage and landed a barrage of punches in the second round, Lovlina’s movement and cleaner combinations kept her in control.

The Indian continued to find openings with her crosses and hooks before finishing strongly with quick 1-2 combinations. The judges awarded her all three rounds, giving her a comprehensive 5-0 victory.For Lovlina, the medal continues an impressive run across major international competitions. She won silver at the previous Asian Games and also claimed Commonwealth Games silver last month, adding to medals won at the World Championships, Asian Championships and World Cup.Lovlina will face Kazakhstan’s reigning 70kg world champion Natalya Bogdanova in the semifinal.

Priya joins growing list of Indian semifinalists

Priya, the Asian Championship gold medallist and reigning Commonwealth Games champion, also secured her place on the podium with a unanimous decision against Samadova.

Her progress means India now have multiple boxers assured of medals, with Parveen Hooda (65kg), Ankush Panghal (80kg) and Narender Berwal (+90kg) having already entered the semifinals on Sunday.Parveen defeated Uzbekistan’s World Championships silver medallist Navbakhor Khamidova 5-0, while Ankush recorded a similar unanimous-decision win over Tajikistan’s Nekruz Salimov. Narender also advanced to the last four in the +90kg category.India had returned from the previous Asian Games with four boxing medals, including one silver and three bronze. With the competition still having several rounds to go in Aichi-Nagoya, the Indian boxing contingent has already positioned itself for another significant contribution to the country’s medal tally.Kapil Pokhariya is also in action on Monday in the men’s 90kg quarterfinal, giving India another opportunity to add to its growing list of semifinalists.