SOFIA, (Bulgaria): Commonwealth Games gold medallist Amit Panghal and national champion Sachin delivered stellar performances to clinch gold medals at the 75th Strandja Memorial Tournament here on Sunday.
Amit (51kg) pulled off a stunning 5-0 win over reigning world champion Sanzhar Tashkenbay. Much like his previous performances in the tournament, he dominated his opponent with pinpoint precision and speed in his attack.
Contrary to the first match, Sachin (57kg) took some time to settle in against Uzbekistan’s Shakhzod Muzafarov. The boxer from Haryana also emerged victorious by a 5-0 margin.
Meanwhile, reigning world champion Nikhat Zareen missed her third Strandja gold medal after going down 2-3 in a closely fought final against Uzbekistan’s Sabina Bobokulova.
Arundhati Choudhary (66kg) nearly pulled off a historic win against China’s Yang Liu. The final went down to the wire with the reigning world champion Yang winning the bout 4-1.
Barun Singh Shagolshem (48kg) and Rajat Shukla (67kg) also had to settle for silver, losing against Khodzhiev Anvarzhan of Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan’s Bekbauov Dulat in their respective finals.
India’s medal tally was rounded off by Akash and Naveen, who settled for bronze.
The Strandja Memorial Tournament is one of Europe’s oldest international sports competitions which saw the participation of over 300 pugilists from 30 countries.
