Lovlina and Mirabai are more concerned about the possible exclusion of boxing and weightlifting from the 2028 LA Games

Indian star players Lovlina Borgohain and Mirabai Chanu who recently won bronze and silver medal in the recently concluded Olympics are concerned about the new announcement made by IOC where they said that the games like Weightlifting and Boxing is not part of the initial stage of the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics which will certainly dash the hopes not just these two players but several budding players of this sport.

“I don’t know much about the issue. Of course, it will not be nice if weightlifting does not stay in the Olympics. Every athlete wants to compete in the Olympics at least once. It’s everyone’s dream. So it will be sad if that happens. I don’t know what’s going to happen. Let’s wait and see,” Mirabai had said at Sportstar’s first-ever North East Sports Conclave last month.

Lovlina also dreaded such a scenario for boxing. “It is a scary prospect, but it’s not in my hands. I am a boxer and I can’t even imagine the sport not being part of the Olympics,” Lovlina said on the sidelines of the event.

World Champion and Olympic medalist Vijender Singh who sparked the era of male boxing in India was in shock when media outlets asked him about Boxing exclusion in 2028 LA games and he said  “Boxing is a world sport, and boxers have been working hard all through Olympic cycles to prove themselves at the Olympics. In India, it is a growing sport, and after 2008 (Beijing Olympics bronze), our women boxers, such as Mary Kom and Lovlina, have been doing well and have got medals.  It is a way of women’s empowerment in our country.

“The IOC should give boxing one more chance. The Indian Government should create pressure (internationally) to help the sport stay in the Olympics program. Let’s hope for the best.”