Hitesh Gulia Aims for Improvement After Silver at World Boxing Cup

Hitesh Gulia Reflects on World Boxing Cup Performance
New Delhi, July 8: Boxer Hitesh Gulia, who narrowly missed out on a gold medal at the 2025 World Boxing Cup in Astana, is determined to refine his skills ahead of the World Championships scheduled for September.
The 20-year-old athlete returned home with a silver medal after a 0-5 defeat in the final match of the men's 70kg category against Brazil's Kaian Oliveira.
Expressing his sentiments, Gulia stated, “While I feel disappointed about not securing gold, I am committed to addressing my mistakes, and I believe everyone will notice my progress at the World Championship. The competition was fierce, especially in the finals, which was a closely contested match.”
In another notable performance, Olympian Pooja Rani also concluded her World Boxing Cup journey with a silver medal in the women's 80kg category.
Rani shared her experience, saying, “At the World Cup held in Kazakhstan, I managed to win the silver medal. My first match was against the host nation, which added some pressure, but I won that bout 4-1. In the semi-finals, I faced a four-time World Cup medalist from Turkey and won that match 3-2.”
The Indian boxing team concluded the tournament with a total of 11 medals, comprising three gold, five silver, and three bronze medals. Earlier, they had secured six medals in the first leg held in Brazil, including one gold and one silver.
Dharmendra Singh Yadav, the head coach of the Indian Boxing Team, expressed pride in the team's performance, stating, “The entire nation shares this pride. Our performance was commendable. The two bouts we lost were very close, ending 3-2, which made the difference. Everyone fought well, and even those who didn’t win gained valuable lessons from their experiences.”