Nishio: Commonwealth Games 2026 champion Preeti on Friday lost to two-time world champion Pang Chol-mi of North Korea in the Women’s 54kg round of 16 at the Nishio Gymnasium here.
The Indian pugilist was outdone by a superb performance from Chol-mi, who won the bout with a unanimous decision of 5-0 against the Indian Hangzhou Games bronze winner.
Preeti came into the bout after receiving a bye in the first round, while the North Korean fighter had defeated Indonesia’s Nabila Maharani in her round of 32 clash.
Chol-mi dominated the contest against the Indian pugilist right from the first round and did not let her get into her own terms. The North Korean won the first round unanimously and kept the dominance intact in the second one too, with another 5-0 ruling in her favour.
The Indian pugilist tried staging a comeback in the final round, but the North Korean was too superior to handle as she took her time to land the punches and kept troubling Preeti. In the end, it was Chol-mi, who bagged the third round 5-0 as well to win the bout unanimously.
Earlier, India’s Sachin made it to the quarterfinals after beating former Asian champion and Worlds bronze medallist Mohammad Abu Jajeh of Jordan in the round of 16 bout with a split 4-1 decision. Sachin, who had won the Commonwealth Games 2026 gold medal, received two 30-27 cards and two 29-28 cards and conceded one 28-29 to win the contest.
He won the first round by a close margin of 3-2 after the bout began in a slow fashion. The Indian pugilist landed his punches more precisely in the second round and bagged that 4-1 before the Jordanian boxer looked desperate in the third round but could not get the punches right. Sachin took the third one 4-1 and the bout by the same margin too.
Sachin will now be up against Worlds bronze medallist Shunsuke Kitamoto in the quarterfinals as he looks for his maiden Asiad medal.