Tournament Dedicated to Birth Centenary of Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee
Lucknow: The State-Level Senior Boxing Championship 2025 was formally inaugurated at the Boxing Hall of K.D. Singh Babu Stadium, Lucknow, under the joint coordination of the Directorate of Sports, Uttar Pradesh, Lucknow, and the Uttar Pradesh Boxing Association. The championship is being organised to mark the birth centenary year of Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee.
Championship to Run from December 16 to 19
The four-day championship will be held from December 16 to December 19, 2025, bringing together senior boxers from across the state. Matches are being conducted on a knockout basis across 10 weight categories.
Chief Guest Declares Championship Open
The championship was officially declared open by the Chief Guest, Dhruvkant Thakur (IPS), Director General, Civil Defence, Uttar Pradesh Police. He encouraged the players to compete with discipline, dedication and true sportsmanship.
Warm Welcome to the Chief Guest
Dr Atul Sinha, Regional Sports Officer, Lucknow, welcomed the Chief Guest by presenting a bouquet. He highlighted the role of boxing in developing physical fitness and mental strength among youth.
Presence of Sports and Boxing Officials
Several prominent officials and coaches were present on the occasion, including Rajesh Kumar Gaur, Deputy Sports Officer; Nishit Dixit, Assistant Coach; Pramod Kumar, General Secretary, Uttar Pradesh Boxing Association; Sahdev, Secretary, District Boxing Association; Vikas Pandey, Archery Coach; and Kripa Shankar, Boxing Coach.
Strong Participation from Across Uttar Pradesh
A total of 19 teams with 120 boxers are participating in the championship, reflecting the growing popularity of boxing across districts and sports hostels of Uttar Pradesh.
Exciting Opening-Day Bouts in Flyweight Category (47.50 kg)
In the flyweight category, Ankit Pal of Prayagraj defeated Saurabh Singh of Kanpur, while Ankit Chauhan of Meerut overcame Junaid of Moradabad. Rishi Singh of Varanasi registered a win against Ramjeet from Sports Hostel Meerut. Sameer-ul-Haq of Jhansi defeated Govind Kumar Saini of Gorakhpur, and Mukesh of Agra beat Brajesh Kumar Chaurasia of Azamgarh.
Competitive Matches in Bantamweight Category (50–55 kg)
Piyush Patel of Lucknow defeated Somayag Kashyap of Devipatan, while Piyush Tomar of Meerut got the better of Saurabh Kashyap from Prayagraj. Vinay Vishwakarma of Varanasi defeated Chandan Bharti of Azamgarh. Sanjeev Kushwaha of Varanasi beat Azam-ul-Haq of Jhansi, and Himanshu Pathak of Bareilly defeated Shivam Kumar of Gorakhpur.
Thrilling Contests in Featherweight Category (55–60 kg)
In the featherweight category, Ajit Pandey of Mirzapur Mandal defeated Somesh of Aligarh. Prakash Yadav from Sports Hostel Meerut registered a win against Prajwal of Kanpur. Karan of Agra defeated Aditya Chauhan of Gorakhpur. Mohammad Faiz of Varanasi beat Gaurav Yadav of Azamgarh. Shivam Kumar of Prayagraj defeated Adarsh Singh of Devipatan. Vijay Singh of Meerut overcame Akhil Shukla of Lucknow, while Deepak Kumar of Bareilly defeated Prashant Ahirwar of Jhansi.
High Expectations from the Championship
The championship is expected to showcase emerging boxing talent from Uttar Pradesh and serve as a strong platform for identifying players for future state and national-level competitions.
