Who is Amit Panghal? All you need to know about the Indian boxer at Paris Olympics 2024
Indian boxer, Amit Panghal, made his second Olympic appearance at the Paris 2024 Olympics. His maiden participation was at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Amit ended his campaign at the Summer Games in Paris after suffering a loss in the Round of 16.
Amit was born to a family of farmers and was motivated to take up the sport as a young kid. It was his elder brother and an amateur boxer himself, Ajay Panghal, who inspired Amit. Ajay contributed with the salary he earned working as a havildar in the Indian Army to fuel his younger brother’s dream.
The hard work put in by the two brothers has surely paid off. Amit became the only Indian male boxer to win a silver medal at the World Championships which came in 2019 in Russia. He is also a former World No.1 in International Boxing Association’s (AIBA) 52kg division.
The 28-year-old is currently appointed as a junior commissioned officer in the Indian army. He took on Patrick Chinyemba of Zambia in the men’s 51kg flyweight round of 16 bout of the Paris 2024 Olympics on July 30.
Amit Panghal makes disappointing exit from Paris Olympics 2024
Amit Panghal had to face a major disappointment after failing to get past the men's 51kg flyweight round of 16. The Indian pugilist was defeated by Zambia's Patrick Chinyemba in a 1-4 split decision.
The 2022 Commonwealth Gold medalist lost the first two rounds of the match to a split decision. Panghal tried to make a comeback in the final round and looked aggresive. However, at the end of the bout, only one of the judges ruled the contest in his favor.
The loss in Paris would be a hard one to digest for the rising star. However, Amit has shown plenty of ability so far in his career that warrants a strong comeback.
Amit Panghal first announced himself with a gold at the 2018 Asian Games in Jakarta. The pugilist also bagged the silver in 2021 Asian Championship and the coveted gold medal at the 2022 CWG in Birmingham. He was awarded the Arjuna Award in 2022.