Without a foreign coach after Stephane Cottalorda’s unceremonious exit, India’s women boxers will have a replacement for the Frenchman before next year’s Commonwealth Games, the national federation’s President Ajay Singh announced at Gurugram on Thursday.
The women boxers returned with a rich haul of a gold, a silver and five bronze medals from the recently concluded Asian Boxing Championships in Vietnam. This was despite the turmoil that rocked the national camp, when Cottalorda resigned from his position in September alleging delay in payment of salary and non-fulfillment of certain other commitments.
The controversy, however, had little impact on the performance of the boxers in Vietnam. “There will be a foreign coach for women boxers very soon, actually before the Commonwealth Games. We have shortlisted a few names already,” Boxing Federation of India President Ajay Singh said at a press conference.
Currently, Sweden’s Santiago Nieva, who is the coach for senior men, is also overseeing the women’s team as a High Performance Director. Singh also listed a few other initiatives lined up for Indian boxing in the coming few months. “We are planning on holding an Indian Open next year, followed by a league in the middle of the year,” he said referring to a pro-style league, which was originally planned for the end of this year.
India will also be hosting its first world championship since the 2006. Guwahati will play host to the youth women’s world championship later this month. “This continues our endeavour to ensure that boxing continues to grow in the country,” Singh added.
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