BFI kick starts the 1st Elite Senior Women’s Nationals, Haridwar

The federation in order to make it an exciting and promising effort for the sport has introduced prize money into nationals for the very first time.

Women’s senior national women boxing championship was held at Roshanabad, Haridwar from November 19-24, 2016

For the first time Uttarakhand hosted this championship. The star attractions included boxer MC Mary Kom, Sarita Devi and Pinki. Over 350 boxers competed across various weight categories over the course of the week.

Union Sports Minister Vijay Goel, Chief Minister Harish Rawat, Sports Minister Dinesh Aggarwal, President of the Indian Boxing Association Ajay Singh and President of the Uttarakhand Olympics Association Rajeev Mehta were present at the inauguration.

It was an opportunity for the locals to witness some interesting bouts of boxing, while it gave the BFI an opportunity to generate some interest in the sport in Uttarakhand.

Boxing fever hit India as 250 boxers from 34 teams vied for top honours in the Senior Women’s Nationals in Haridwar hosted by Boxing Federation of India in association with Uttarakhand Boxing Association. This was the first big event hosted by the newly formed Boxing Federation of India in an aim to popularize the sport amongst masses in India, especially amongst women.

The event kick started with much fanfare and was graced by the presence of Shri Harish Rawat, Chief Minister Uttarakhand, Olympic Bronze Medalist and 5 time World Champion Mary Kom, Asian Games bronze-medallist L Sarita Devi and Shri Ajay Singh, President, Boxing Federation of India. Also Shri Dinesh Agrawal, Minister for Sports Uttarakhand, Shri Rajiv Yadav, Secretary of Sports, Shri Rajiv Mehta, President, Uttarakhand Olympic Association and Secretary General Indian Olympic Association and Shri Shailesh Bagauli, Secretary of Sports, Uttarakhand Government were present.

Talking about the initiative, Shri Ajay Singh, President, Boxing Federation of India, “I am delighted that India is conducting the National championship for Women after a gap of 5 years. We seek to become a global boxing power and this is the first step. We will select the most deserving players from this championship and train them at a national camp with world class facilities and infrastructure.”

Shri Ajay Singh also expressed his gratitude towards the Government of Uttarakhand who came in to support this initiative by Boxing Federation of India. He thanked Shri Harish Rawat, Shri Dinesh Agrawal and Shri Ranjeet Rawat for their support.

Uttarakhand Boxing Association came in full support for the newly formed federation’s efforts towards creating a sustainable environment for much suffered sport. Shri Sanjay Gunjyal, Chairman for the Association, Shri Nirman Mukherjee, President, Dr. DP Bhatt, Secretary showcased their commitment towards the game by their presence on Saturday.

Women’s National Boxing Championship in Haridwar concluded on November 24, where the best women boxers were seen to be battling it out for the coveted title. The federation in its first move has attracted some of the renowned corporate houses like Spicejet, Ola, and Xebia as sponsors for the tournament. Spicejet has been roped in as the title sponsor. The tournament is powered by Ola and IT organization Xebia. Atin OOH and Shiv Naresh joined as associate sponsors. The federation in order to make it an exciting and promising effort for the sport has introduced prize money into nationals for the very first time. A total prize purse of over four lakhs will be given to the winners in all 10 categories. Also, up for grabs is a spot in the national camp for the competing boxers in nationals.