Lovlina Borgohain Wins Asian Games 75kg Gold on Her Birthday, Joins Mary Kom in Elite Club

Lovlina Borgohain turned 29 on Friday and marked the day by winning the women's 75kg boxing gold at the Asian Games, beating China's Bao Ziyi by a unanimous 5-0 decision at the Nishio Gymnasium in Aichi prefecture. The result makes her only the second Indian woman boxer to win an Asian Games title, after Mary Kom's flyweight gold at Incheon in 2014. Her run here began with the 5-0 quarterfinal win that guaranteed her a medal earlier in the week.

How the final was won

Bao went on the attack from the opening bell, and the first round was the closest of the three. Lovlina soaked up the early pressure and scored on the counter, taking the round 3-2 on the judges' cards.

The second round was more one-sided. As the Chinese boxer kept walking forward, Lovlina landed the cleaner shots and won it 4-1, giving her a 2-0 lead in rounds going into the last three minutes.

She then boxed with discipline in the final round, letting Bao come to her and answering with counters. All five judges gave her the round, sealing the unanimous verdict.

Speaking to reporters afterwards, Lovlina said she had told herself she would give herself a gold medal as a birthday present and never thought about losing. She described the last round as very tough and said she had never faced Bao before, so she had no idea what to expect from her.

From silver to gold

The gold is an upgrade on the silver Lovlina took in the same weight class at the previous Asian Games in Hangzhou. To get to Friday's final, she came through a tight semifinal against Kazakhstan's Natalya Bogdanova, which she won 3-2 on a split decision.

Her father, Tiken Borgohain, said the family in Assam was overjoyed. He noted that she had spoken openly about wanting to change the colour of her Asian Games medal, and that seeing her do it on her birthday made it even more special.

A near-complete medal cabinet

Born in Assam's Golaghat district, Lovlina has now won medals at every major level open to her. Her CV includes:

• Olympics: bronze at Tokyo 2020
• World Championships: gold in the 75kg division in 2023
• Asian Championships: gold in 2022
• Commonwealth Games: silver at Glasgow 2026
• Asian Games: silver at Hangzhou, and now gold at Aichi-Nagoya

She has already received the Arjuna Award (2020) and the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna (2021), India's highest sporting honour.

Where India stand

Lovlina's win was India's 12th gold of these Games. With 24 silver and 34 bronze medals, the country's tally now stands at 70, with the final weekend of competition still to come. Earlier on Friday, India's women's recurve archers also took a historic team gold, and the women's hockey team was set to play China in its final later in the day.

For Indian women's boxing, the result carries extra weight. For more than a decade Mary Kom was the only Indian woman to have stood on top of an Asian Games podium. Lovlina has now joined her, and with Los Angeles 2028 two years away, the timing gives her a strong platform for her next Olympic campaign.

This is an original summary based on public reporting. See our editorial policy for how we source, write, and correct our stories.