Deprived of 2022 bronze, Parveen Hooda now wins from Asian Games gold

Parveen Hooda was 22 when she won bronze at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou, a medal that seemed to mark the beginning of a bigger journey. An Olympic debut seemed within reach. Then came the suspension, the lost medal and the Olympics, which she never participated in. Three years later, after nearly two years away from the ring and another setback in Glasgow, Parveen is back where she always wanted to be. She is one victory away from the gold from the Asian Games.

Parveen defeated China’s Li Shu 4-1 in the women’s 65kg semi-final on Tuesday at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games. On Friday, he will face Chen Nien-chin of Chinese Taipei, a bronze medalist from the Paris Olympics.

Everything changed after Hangzhou. Parveen was suspended by the International Testing Agency for whereabouts errors, with the ban ruling her out of competition for nearly two years. The Asian Games bronze was stripped from her record and the suspension also cost her the chance to compete for an Olympic quota place and ultimately ended her hopes of competing in the Paris Games.

It came as her career was taking off. Parveen won bronze at the 2022 IBA World Championships and gold at this year’s Asian Boxing Championships. The Asian Games medal was the next step towards what she hoped would be an Olympic debut. Instead, she spent nearly two years out of the ring.

When the suspension ended, Parveen had to start over. She worked her way back into contention and at the end of 2025 won gold at the World Cup Boxing Finals. However, the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow brought another setback. In the quarterfinals, she lost to England’s Sacha Hickey on a split decision and left without a medal.

It was another tough moment for the boxer, who was trying to rebuild after such a long absence. However, the disappointment that has accompanied her in recent years was not known against Li.

Both boxers were cautious at first, but Parveen gradually found her rhythm. Her counter punch started to land and three of the five judges gave her the opening round. In the second, she continued to control the distance, making Li pay whenever the Chinese boxer tried to get close. All five judges scored the round in favor of Parveen.

Li tried to change the match in the third, make it more physical and push forward. Parveen did not allow himself to be drawn into the chaos. She stayed patient, picked her shots and won the round 4-1 to book her place in the final.

She is now only the third Indian female boxer to reach the finals of the Asian Games. MC Mary Kom won gold in 2014, while Lovlina Borgohain won silver in the previous edition.

Chen will present another challenge on Friday. The Chinese Taipei boxer won bronze at the Paris Olympics and will bring plenty of experience to the finals. But Parveen has already come a long way to get here.

The medal she won in Hangzhou was taken away. Paris missed her. Glasgow finished with another early exit. Now she has a chance to win the Asian Games gold she never managed to defend. One fight stands between Parveen and the title.

– The end