Fernandez evaluated India's chances at the upcoming Summer Games.
Already the first Irish woman to win medals in two Olympics, pride was running high. And then she went for the gold and Diamond Park erupted in thunderous whoops of joy.
It was gold rush for India at the Asian Junior Boxing Championships in Dubai on Sunday with four pugilists from the country winning gold medals.
In a body blow to India's medal prospects in the Commonwealth Games, key sports such as hockey, badminton, wrestling, cricket and shooting have been dropped from the 2026 edition by host city Glasgow, which unveiled a pruned roster of 10 disciplines to keep the event budget-friendly.
Ace Indian boxer Shiva Thapa began his Commonwealth Games campaign on a rousing note by defeating Pakistan's Suleman Baloch in the first round of the 63.5kg category, in Birmingham, on Friday.
The Indian hockey team entered the Olympic semifinals for a second successive edition but Lakshya Sen's zealous push for a gold turned into a hunt for bronze on a bitter-sweet Sunday for India at the Paris Games.
Check out Indian athletes' schedule for Thursday, August 1, Day 6 of competition
The reigning world champion had won her Tokyo bronze in the 69kg category.
Asian Games selections were biased, made to feel unworthy in national camp, claims Panghal
Indian Olympic Association president PT Usha feels the axing of medal-yielding sports such as wrestling, hockey and badminton from the 2026 Glasgow Commonwealth Games programme is "disappointing" for the country but the approach to reduce cost would ensure that the event continues to find hosts in future.
'My dad is trying to retire me for a while now ...
Mary Kom wants Asian Games to be her swansong
She becomes only fifth Indian woman boxer to achieve this feat.
'Our brothers and sisters are headed to Paris, hungry for medals. A billion of us will be watching them nervous and excited as our athletes set foot in the tracks and fields and courts and rings.'
The 21-year-old from Haryana then landed a flurry of punches in the third round as the last three minutes were closely-fought between the two. But Nitu defended tightly and looked in control to emerge victorious.
Images from Saturday's events at the World Athletics Indoor Championships, at Nanjing Youth Olympic Sports Park, Nanjing, China.
Check out how India's athletes fared on Day 5, Wednesday, July 31, 2024:
'It's good to be back. We start our season with a victory. It wasn't easy to fight against (Sulley). Will return to the gym in a week and will fight again in December or January'
Nikhat's form augurs well for India with the Olympics coming up next year.
Manu Bhaker and partner Sarabjot Singh will compete in the 10m air pistol mixed team bronze medal play-off match on Tuesday.
In the ongoing Women's World Championship, Jaismine Lamboria clinched her opening bout on Friday.
China delivered their best performance at a Summer Olympics since the 2008 Games on home soil
In another men's bout, Sumit stamped his authority to get the better of Kazakhstan's Ayatulla Takiz and confirm his place in the final.
For most part, Indian boxing had lots to celebrate and it started with the season-opening Strandja Memorial, one of Europe's oldest and most competitive tournaments.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi met with the Indian contingent which returned from the Paris Olympics with six medals.
Three Indian pugilists, including Nikhat Zareen, advanced to the semi-finals in their respective events after thrilling victories while Lovlina Borgohain bowed out in the quarter-finals in the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham on Wednesday.
Amit Panghal, a World Championships silver medallist, out-punched Namri Berri of Vanuatu via an unanimous verdict.
Dev becomes only the second boxer after Vijender Singh, who won bronze at the 2008 Games in Beijing, to win an Olympics medal.
Mary Kom (51kg) will open her campaign against Dominica's Miguelina Hernandez on July 25; Panghal gets bye into pre-quarters.
Nikhat Zareen, Lovlina Borgohain, Nitu Ghanghas and Saweety Boora will look to bag gold at the Women's World Boxing Championship.
India's schedule at the Olympics on Wednesday, Day 5 of competition.
Meet India's top athletes at Olympics 2024.
A major surprise in the 2024 Google search trends was the absence of iconic names like Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, M S Dhoni, and Virat Kohli from the list of the top 10 most-searched athletes.
Excited to witness the first professional boxing in the state, Chhattisgarh Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel said: "Promoting sports for the current and next-generation is extremely important for the state of Chhattisgarh.
World championship trials would be held from March 7 to 9, followed by the Asiad trials from March 10 to 13.
While a billion hearts would pray for all the participants to do well, all eyes would be set on the duo of Deepika Kumari/Atanu Das, the four shooters and Mirabai Chanu to open India's medals count.
Tokyo-bound AFI medical commission chairman AK Mendiratta dies of COVID-19.
PTI introduces the team, who is aiming for medals when India's campaign at the Tokyo Games commences on July 24.
Pakistan's sensational javelin thrower Arshad Nadeem who won the country's first individual Olympics gold in 40 years is being showered with cash awards by Punjab and other provincial governments and organisations.
India Amit Panghal (52kg) bowed out of the Olympics boxing after a surprising 1-4 defeat to Rio Games silver-medallist Yuberjen Martinez in the pre-quarter-finals, on Saturday.
