PM Modi congratulates Nikhat Zareen for World Boxing Championship gold; 'India is proud'

Following Nikhat Zareen's historic gold medal win at the Women's Boxing World Championship on Thursday, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and several other Union Ministers took to social media to congratulate the 25-year old. Zareen registered an emphatic 5-0 win over Thailand's Jitpong Jutamas in the flyweight category (52 kg) to become only the fifth Indian woman to win a boxing gold.

Politicians congratulate Nikhat Zareen on historic feat

Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao was delighted to see Nikhat Zareen win the gold medal as she hails from the state.

Following the 25-year-old's win, a statement released from the CM's office read, "The CM congratulated Nikhat for clinching the Gold medal in the championship. He wholeheartedly complemented Nikhat for unfurling India's flag on the International Sports platform. CM said that it is a proud moment that Nikhat stood as world champion in Boxing with the encouragement of the state government. The government is motivating the sportspersons in all aspects and already taking measures to set up Rural Sports Centre in all villages to create young sportspersons in the state, the CM said."

Meanwhile, PM Modi and several other Union Ministers and politicians wished the young boxing star on her success.

Nikhat Zareen becomes only 5th Indian woman to win a boxing gold

Nikhat Zareen was utterly dominant in her bout against Jitpong Jutamas as she outclassed her opponent in a fantastic 5-0 win. Following her landmark victory, she joined the elite list of six-time champion Mary Kom (2002, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2010 and 2018), Sarita Devi (2006), Jenny RL (2006) and Lekha KC (2006) in winning the prestigious gold medal in boxing.

Who is Nikhat Zareen?

Nikhat Zareen was born on June 14, 1996, in the Nizamabad district of Andhra Pradesh, which is now in Telangana. She completed her primary education in Nizamabad and is currently pursuing a degree in Bachelor of Arts (BA) from the AV College in Hyderabad.

Her journey into boxing began when she was inducted into the Sports Authority of India (SAI) in Vishakapatnam to train under the Dronacharya awardee, IV Rao, in 2009. Her talent in the sport was there for everyone to see as she was also declared the 'golden best boxer' at the Erode Nationals in 2010.

From that point on, she has come a long way as she won the gold medal in the flyweight division of the AIBA Women's Junior and Youth World Boxing Championship before picking up a silver in the Youth World Boxing Championships in 2014.