Paris Olympics 2024: Lovlina Borgohain Thrashes Sunniva Hofstad To Seal Dominant Win

PARIS: India's star boxer Lovlina Borgohain made a strong start to her campaign as the Tokyo Bronze medalist outclassed Sunniva Hofstad of Norway to register a convincing win by unanimous decision in the first round of the women’s 75 kg category in boxing on Wednesday.

Lovlina went all guns blazing during the initial phases of the match as she tried to catch the Norwegian off-guard with some early punches to get the momentum going.

But Hofstad countered with punches of her own, yet looked shaky as the first round ended with some sneaky uppercuts of her own.

The Indian pugilist utilized the experience factor to her advantage in the second round as well, jabbing away at Hofstad, rendering her unable to close the distance as the Lovlina continued to exert tremendous pressure with her flurries of jabs.

This tactics worked in Lovlina's favour as Hofstad did not find her rhythm. Sensing vulnerability in her opponent, Lovlina unleashed a few clean ramming swipes at Hofstad, toying with her frustration to get the better of her throughout the second round.

However, the tempo of this clash changed in the third round as both boxer went neck-to-neck, taking each other to the ropes more often, closing in on the distance and landing body shots.

But, in the final minute of the third round, Lovlina produced a moment of brilliance as she tactfully evaded the Norwegian and launched a relentless counter-offensive move to end the round in dominant fashion.

Hofstad found her footing here, as she manged to finally close in on the evading Indian and trade some fiery blows.

A tough challenge awaits Lovlina Borgohain in the next match as she will be up against two-time Olympic medallist Li Qian.

If she manages to cross this hurdle, then Lovlina's road to Olympic glory is set to get even more tougher as she will face either fifth-seeded World silver medallist Caitlin Parker of Australia or world champion and fourth-seed Khadija El-Mardi of Morocco in the quarter-finals.

ALSO READ: Paris Olympics 2024: Rafael Nadal And Carlos Alcaraz Advances To Men's Doubles Quarterfinals

ALSO WATCH: