AICHI-NAGOYA (TIP): India’s medal campaign gathered fresh momentum on Day 14 of the Asian Games as boxer Lovlina Borgohain celebrated her 29th birthday with a historic gold medal, while the women’s recurve archery team added another title to take India’s overall gold tally to 12.
India’s medal count climbed to 70 – 12 gold, 24 silver and 34 bronze – lifting the country to sixth place in the overall standings.
Lovlina produced a commanding performance against China’s Bao Ziyi, winning the women’s 75kg final by a unanimous 5-0 decision at the Nishio Gymnasium. The Tokyo Olympic bronze medallist became only the second Indian woman boxer after Mary Kom to win an Asian Games gold.
The Assamese boxer started strongly, edging the opening round 3-2 before taking control of the contest. She won the second and third rounds 4-1 to complete a convincing victory. Four judges scored the bout 29-28 in her favor, while the fifth gave her a 30-27 verdict.
Lovlina had reached the final after a hard-fought 3-2 semifinal victory over Kazakhstan’s Natalya Bogdanova. She had earlier defeated South Korea’s Seong Suyeon 5-0 in the quarterfinals.
Historic archery gold
Earlier, India’s Ankita Bhakat, Kirti Sharma and Kumkum Anil Mohod created history by defeating 10-time Olympic champions South Korea 5-3 in the women’s recurve team final.
The victory gave India its first-ever Asian Games gold in the women’s recurve team event. The Indian trio held their nerve in windy conditions after the opening two sets were shared. South Korea then faltered in the third set, hitting three consecutive 8s, allowing India to take a 55-52 lead.
The Korean team scored 54 in the fourth set, while Kirti’s opening 8 was subsequently changed to a 9, giving India the points needed to level the set and seal the title.
India had earlier beaten China 5-1 in the semifinal to reach the final for the first time.
The archery success has been particularly significant for India. The country had already swept the men’s, women’s and mixed compound team gold medals, with the mixed team also securing an LA28 Olympic quota place.
Kumkum has now added multiple medals to her collection at these Games. She and Dhiraj Bommadevara won silver in the mixed recurve team event, while the women’s recurve team’s gold completed another major milestone for Indian archery.
More medals in the offing
India’s medal rush is not over. Parveen Hooda and Ankush are also competing in boxing finals, giving the contingent further opportunities to add gold medals. The women’s hockey team is taking on defending champions China in the final, with the match also carrying significance for qualification to the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.
India has also added medals in sailing and wrestling, with Nethra Kumanan winning bronze in the women’s dinghy event, her first Asian Games medal in her fourth appearance.
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