Priya Ghanghas Settles For Bronze After Semifinal Defeat To Yang Chengyu At Asian Games 2026

Priya Ghanghas clinched a bronze medal in the women’s 60kg boxing category at the Asian Games after suffering a 1-4 defeat to China’s Yang Chengyu in the semifinal at the Nishio Gymnasium on Wednesday.

The 20-year-old Indian, competing at her maiden Asian Games, put up a fight against the more experienced Yang, a former world champion, but could not progress to the final. The split-decision result brought Ghanghas’ campaign to an end while confirming her place on the podium.

Ghanghas had secured her medal after beating Tajikistan’s Mijgona Samadova 5-0 in the quarterfinals.

The Bhiwani boxer had entered the Games with an impressive record, having won gold at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Asian Boxing Elite Championships in Ulaanbaatar. She had also taken silver at last year’s U22 Boxing Championships in Bangkok.

A product of the Sports Authority of India Centre in Bhiwani, Ghanghas follows in the footsteps of several prominent Indian boxers who have trained at the facility, including Olympians Akhil Kumar, Vijender Kumar, Manish Kaushik, Raj Kumar Sangwan and Vikas Krishan Yadav.

Her bronze contributed to India’s six-medal haul in boxing at the Games, improving on the country’s performance from the previous edition, where Indian boxers won one silver and three bronze medals.

India have already secured two places in the finals, with Parveen Hooda progressing in the 65kg category and Ankush Panghal reaching the 80kg title bout. Narender Berwal also finished with a bronze in the super-heavyweight category on Tuesday.

Later on Wednesday, Olympic medallist Lovlina Borgohain will take on the challenge in the 75kg category, while Kapil Pokhariya will compete in the 90kg division, with both Indian boxers aiming to make the gold-medal bout.

With PTI Inputs