Shiva Thapa enters record books, wins sixth Asian Boxing Championships medal

India’s star boxer Shiva Thapa on Saturday clinched a silver medal in the men’s 63kg group at the 2022 ASBC Asian Elite Boxing Championships in Amman, Jordan. With Saturday’s silver, Thapa became the first Indian male boxer to win six medals in the Asian Championships.

Thapa won his first continental championship medal in the 2013 edition. He also won medals in the 2015, 2017, 2019, and 2021 editions of the Asian Elite Boxing Championships.

“I hope I will inspire the next generation of Indian boxers and our sport will be more popular in my country,” Thapa was quoted as saying by the IBA website.

Shiva Thapa settles for 🥈 at the Asian Boxing Championship!

🇮🇳's Shiva lost the Men's 63.5 kg Final to 🇺🇿's Abdullaev Ruslan by RSC-Injury

Congratulations on the podium finish champ 💪 https://t.co/5JyPC6pbXl

Shiva Thapa's journey to silver medal

Shiva Thapa faced South Korean boxer Choi Min Su in the quarterfinals. The 29-year-old knew the importance of this quarterfinal and fought like it was a title contest. He won his bout to remain in contention for his sixth Asian Championships medal.

Thapa then defeated 2019 Asian champion Bakhodur Usmanov of Tajikistan 4-1 in the semis to set up a title clash with Abdullaev Ruslan of Uzbekistan.

In his pursuit for the gold medal, the Indian boxer started on a positive note. However, his dream of winning the gold medal was shattered as he suffered a knee injury in the second round and the referee stopped the contest.

India's overall record at 2022 Asian Elite Boxing Championships

Basking in glory. 👑

📸: ASBC/Margit Kinsces

#AsianChampionships
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Earlier Sumit (75kg) and Govind Kumar Sahani (48kg) suffered defeats in the semis and settled for bronze medals.

The Indian team overall won 12 medals, including four gold, two silver, and six bronze medals. Of the 12 medals, the female boxers won seven. The Indian women’s team topped the table for gold medals followed by Kazakhstan.

India’s 2020 Tokyo Olympics bronze medalists Lovlina Borgohain (75kg), Alfiya Pathan (81+kg), Saweety Boora (81kg), and Parveen Hooda (63kg) were gold medal winners in their respective weight categories.