Women Boxing National: World champion Nitu, Olympians Pooja Rani, Jaismine headline star-studded line-up

New Delhi, March 20: The country's best boxing talent is all set to punch their way to glory as the draw for the 8th Elite Women National Boxing Championships to be played at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex in Greater Noida from March 21-27 set the ball rolling for a week-long exhibition of the exhilarating contest between the established and upcoming talent.

A total of 188 boxers from 24 state federations and bodies will be competing in ten weight categories. World Champion and top women boxer Nikhat Zareen, IOA president PT Usha along with multiple Olympians will be in attendance to cheer the boxers.

Leading the charge in their respective weight categories will be Olympian Jaismine (57kg), World Champion Nitu Ghanghas in the 48 kg weight category, two-time world youth champion Sakshi (54kg), former national champion Poonam Poonia (57kg), 2018 World Championship bronze medallist Simranjit Kaur (65kg), former World Champion Medallist Sonia Lather (60kg) and Anamika (51kg) among others.

The heavier weight categories will see the likes of Olympian Pooja Rani, representing Haryana and Strandja Memorial silver medallist Anupama of RSPB bracketed in the same half of the 80kg weight category.

The National Championships provide the boxers the platform not only to showcase their skills on the biggest stage, but their performance here also opens the door for international tournaments and hence is a crucial milestone in a boxer's journey.

Challenging these established stars will be the likes of Pema Bhutia from Sikkim, Preeti of All India Police, former Nationals medallist Kalaivani S of Tamil Nadu and others.

Competitions will start in all 10 categories on Friday with a total of 44 bouts scheduled to be played in two sessions starting at 3 pm.