A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
On a comeback trail after serving her one-year ban, Asian Games bronze-medallist L Sarita Devi will be seen in competitive action from December 1 as part of a 13-strong Indian team of 10 men and 3 women for the training-cum-competition event in the Chinese city of Qian'an.
The fire back in her belly after overcoming the Rio Olympic heartbreak, celebrated Indian woman boxer M C Mary Kom has decided to go back to the light flyweight 48kg division amid speculation that it is among the two categories that the International Boxing Association (AIBA) is pushing for inclusion in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Determined to keep the Olympic dream alive despite the long-standing administrative mess, a spirited Indian boxing team, featuring the likes of M C Mary Kom and Shiva Thapa, will take off on Monday night for the Asian Qualifiers in Qian'an City, China. Ten men and three women form the 13-strong team which will be in action from March 25. In the men's competition, only the top three boxers in each weight category will make the Olympic cut with the third spot decided via a box-off between the two bronze-medallists. In the women's draw, only the gold and silver medal winners will qualify for Rio de Janeiro. In the absence of a recognised federation, the Indians will once again compete under the flag of the International Boxing Association (AIBA). "It is going to be a very tough tournament because not many from the Asian region qualified during last year's World Championships. I am expecting around 30 countries and more than 250 boxers to be there at this event," national coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu told PTI ahead of the team's departure.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
MC Mary Kom advanced to the final but Shiva Thapa settled for a bronze medal after an upset semi-final loss in the India Open boxing tournament for men and women in New Delhi on Wednesday.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Saturday
On his first official visit to a member country after assuming office in August, world athletics chief Sebastian Coe urged India to promote track and field at the school level if it wants to excel on the international stage.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
India's campaign in the Asian Games gymnastics ended, on Friday, without a medal after Dipa Karmakar finished fifth in the women's balance beam event final in Jakarta.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday
India cricket captain Virat Kohli and weightlifter Mirabai Chanu were on Monday recommended for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna by the awards selection committee.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
Talking extensively to Rediff.com's Laxmi Negi before flying out for the Asian Games, Mary gets candid about the life-changing Bollywood biopic Mary Kom, missing out on the Commonweath Games berth, her fight with the Sports Authority of India and what drives her to be the best inside the squared rope.
Men joined the gold quest through Gaurav Solanki (52kg) and Vikas Krishan (75kg) as the team rejoiced its best ever medal haul at the mega-event on Saturday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
Vijayveer Sidhu, 16, shot a gold in the 25m standard pistol event for junior men after combining with Rajkanwar Singh Sandhu and Adarsh Singh to claim the team gold on the last day of the ISSF World Championships.
They showed big hearts. They were unfazed by the stature of their rivals and that's what is very important. You respect your rival but don't get intimidated by his CV, says India's High-Performance Director Santiago Nieva.
A livid Mary Kom asked her vanquished opponent Nikhat Zareen to prove herself in the ring instead of making irritating comments.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
The Indian boxers' campaign in the Asian Olympic Qualifiers was off to a disappointing start with all three in action, on Saturday, including former Commonwealth Games champion Manoj Kumar (64kg), bowing out with opening round losses in Qian'an, China.
Asian champion Pooja Rani (75kg) and the seasoned Vikas Krishan (69kg) became the first set of Indian boxers to qualify for this year's Tokyo Olympics by advancing to the semi-finals of the continental qualifiers, in Amma, on Sunday. While fourth-seeded Rani notched up a facile 5-0 win over Thailand's Pornnipa Chutee, Krishan endured a tough one against third-seeded Japanese Sewonrets Okazawa before also prevailing in a unanimous verdict against the Asian silver-medallist.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
Boxer Vijender Singh threw his hat in the ring for the Padma Bhushan but insisted he won't be 'hurt' in case of a rejection
As the one-year ban for the tearful outburst at the Asian Games ends on Thursday, former World champion Laishram Sarita Devi says the forced sabbatical proved a blessing in disguise and helped her become a thinking boxer and calmer person.
Five-time world champion M C Mary Kom entered the final in the 48 kg classs at the Commonwealth Games, beating Sri Lanka's Anusha Dilrukshi , on Wednesday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
In the medal standings, India were placed eighth with a compilation of seven gold, five silver and 17 bronze.
Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President Narinder Batra made the announcement during the send-off ceremony in New Delhi on Monday.
India's total medal count stood at 252 (132 gold, 79 silver, 41 bronze), leaving behind hosts Nepal and Sri Lanka behind. Nepal has won 165 medals (45 gold, 44 silver, 76 bronze) while Sri Lanka have collected 197 medals (36 gold, 68 silver, 93 bronze).
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Wednesday
Commonwealth Games silver-medallist L Devendro Singh (49kg) stormed into the semi-finals, while Manoj Kumar (64kg) and Sumit Sangwan (81kg) entered the quarters to be just one win away from clinching Olympic berths at the International Boxing Association's (AIBA) World Qualifying Tournament in Baku on Tuesday.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Monday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Friday
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
Manu Baker won two gold medals in as many days on a World Cup debut
Long-distance runner Kavita Raut's Olympic qualification was the icing on the cake on yet another impressive day for India at the 12th South Asian Games, in Guwahati, on Friday. Firmly entrenched atop the overall standings, India increased their medal tally to 248 -- including 146 gold, 79 silver and 23 bronze.
What a year Sania Mirza, Leander Paes, Saina Nehwal, Vijender Singh and Anirban Lahiri had!
Asian Games will be a reality check for India's athletes after the Commonwealth Games high
