Amit Panghal to enter Olympic Qualifiers as No. 1 pugilist

Amit Panghal

New Delhi: Amit Panghal, who won the historic silver medal at the World Championships in the 52-kg weight category, has been ranked number one by the Boxing Task Force of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) ahead of next month's Olympic Qualifiers.

Panghal is at the top spot with 420 points, according to the list released by the IOC's Boxing Task Force, which is in charge of administering the sport right now. The 24-year-old is the first boxer in the last 10 years to achieve the global top position in his category.

Olympic bronze-medallist Vijender Singh had in 2009 achieved the number one spot after he won bronze in the 75kg weight category at the World Championships held in Milan. Panghal had earlier told IANS that at least two gold medals can be expected from Indian boxers at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

"We will go into the Tokyo Olympics with an aim to win at least two gold medals. We can win more but at least two gold medals can be expected from Indian boxers at the Tokyo Olympics," Panghal had said.

The Asian Olympic qualifier event, which was originally scheduled to be held from February 3 to 14 in Wuhan, will be held at the Sport City in Amman, Jordan from March 3-11. In the women's rankings, ace Indian boxer MC Mary Kom occupies the fifth spot in the 51kg category with 225 points.

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