New Delhi: World Championship medallists Amit Panghal and Manish Kaushik have been exempted from participating at the Senior National Boxing Championship to be held in Shimla from October 4 to 10.
Panghal (52kg) became the first Indian male boxer to claim a silver medal at the World Championships, while Kaushik (63kg) returned with a bronze at the event which concluded in Ekaterinburg, Russia Saturday.
“We are not playing Nationals,” Panghal said during an interaction after returning from the World Championship Monday.
“The team that went for the World Championships is not playing at the Nationals. Since, it was a high level tournament, so we have been given rest,” he added.
Confirming this, High-Performance Director Santiago Nieva said all but one boxer returning from the world championship will be allowed to skip the Nationals.
“Ashish Kumar (75kg) is the only boxer to play at the Nationals. No other boxer from the World Championship team will play at the Nationals,” he said.
Asian Championships silver medallist Ashish had lost to China’s Tuohetaerbieke Tanglatihan in a split 2-3 verdict in the second round at the tournament.
An eight-member squad led by Panghal represented India at the World Championships.
Duryodhan Singh Negi (69kg), Ashish Kumar (75kg), Brijesh Yadav (81kg), Sanjeet (91kg), and Satish Kumar (+91kg) were also part of the team which competed at the event.