Press Trust of India
Qian’an (China), April 1: An Olympic quota place pocketed, Indian boxer Shiva Thapa (56kg) ended his campaign with a silver medal after losing in the final of the Asian/Oceania Qualifying Tournament here Friday.
The 22-year-old Assamese, who is a World Championship bronze medallist, went down 0-3 to Thailand’s Chatchai Butdee in the summit clash. Butdee is the reigning Asian champion.
Shiva had booked his ticket to Rio de Janeiro by making the final Thursday after beating Kazakhstan’s Kairat Yeraliyev.
Meanwhile, it was a heart-break once again for L Devendro Singh (49kg), who missed a second opportunity to qualify for the Olympics.
The CWG silver medallist, who lost in the semifinals, went down Friday in the box-off for the Olympic slot.
Devendro fought his heart out in a keenly-contested bout against Mongolia’s Gan-Erdene Gankhuyag but lost 1-2. The Indian lost the opening round unanimously and the second round on a split decision before winning the final round in three minutes. However, that was not enough to make up for the deficit he conceded earlier in the bout.
Woman boxer MC Mary Kom (51kg) will take on Chinese Taipei’s Yu-Ting Lin in the box-off here Saturday to decide the new rankings and seedings for next month’s World Championships in Kazakhstan. It will be her last chance to qualify for the Olympics.
