Lovlina Borgohain Wins Asian Games Gold on Her Birthday, Ends India’s 12-Year Wait

Olympic bronze medallist Lovlina Borgohain celebrated her birthday in memorable fashion by winning her maiden Asian Games gold medal and ending India’s 12-year wait for a women’s boxing gold at the continental event.
Lovlina defeated China’s 20-year-old Ziyi Bao by a unanimous 5-0 decision in the women’s 75kg final on Friday. The victory also saw her improve on the silver medal she won at the previous edition of the Asian Games.
With the triumph, Lovlina became only the second Indian woman to win an Asian Games boxing gold. The first was legendary boxer MC Mary Kom, who claimed the women’s 51kg flyweight title at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon.
“It was my birthday today, so it is a very special birthday. I am feeling really good. I thought I would have to gift myself a gold medal on my birthday. It is the first time I have given myself a present like this,” Lovlina said after the bout.
The Indian boxer added that she gave everything she had during the contest and never allowed herself to think about losing.
Lovlina Handles Tough Contest Against Bao
The final was a challenging contest, with Bao repeatedly attempting to close the distance and prevent Lovlina from making effective use of her height advantage.
Lovlina adopted an aggressive approach from the opening bell and landed several punches early. Bao responded strongly with counter-attacks, using her southpaw stance to connect with combinations.
The Chinese boxer’s pressure resulted in several clinches, making the contest scrappy at times. However, Lovlina finished the opening round strongly, landing clean and powerful punches to take it 3-2 on the judges’ scorecards.
Bao entered the second round looking to increase the pressure and get inside Lovlina’s range. The Indian boxer initially worked to maintain distance and create space for her punches.
Towards the end of the round, Lovlina found her range and landed a series of accurate blows. The judges awarded her the round 4-1, giving her a valuable advantage heading into the final round.
Calm Finish Seals the Gold
The third round followed a similar pattern. Bao threw punches in large numbers as she tried to change the outcome, but many of her shots failed to land cleanly.
Lovlina remained disciplined defensively and waited for opportunities to counter. Once she had established a clear lead, she reduced the pace during the closing stages and avoided unnecessary exchanges.
She maintained her distance and successfully saw out the contest to secure a unanimous 5-0 victory.
Lovlina said the final round was particularly difficult because she knew she needed to maintain her advantage.
“It was a very tough fight. But I was always thinking that I just have to win. The last round was very tough. I was winning 2-1 in the first and second round, so I thought I just had to win the third round,” she said.
The victory gave Lovlina a special birthday celebration and added an Asian Games gold medal to her growing international boxing record.