Preeti Pawar opened India’s account on August 1 with a gold medal in women’s 54kg boxing, beating Canada’s Scarlett Savannah on unanimous decision
Updated: August 1, 2026, 3:53 PM IST
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File photo of Preeti Pawar(Credits: X)
Preeti Pawar won the first gold on offer today in Boxing as she defeated Canada’s Scarlett Savannah by unanimous decision to win the women’s 54kg title at the on-going 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.
The 22-year-old produced a composed performance from start to finish, giving her opponent little room to make an impact in the 5-0 win.
Preeti took control of the bout right from the opening roundShe landed clean punches and dictated the pace, with all five judges scoring the round 10-8 in her favourCarrying the momentum into the second round, the World No3 bantamweight continued to attack with confidence while maintaining a solid defence.
She stayed in control throughout the contest to complete a comfortable victory and hand India its first gold medal of the day.
The Indian boxer had looked in excellent form throughout the tournamentShe began her campaign with a convincing win over Scotland’s Niamh Houston in the opening round before defeating Australia’s Tina Rahimi in the quarterfinals to book her place in the last fourIn the semifinal, Preeti delivered another dominant display, beating Zambia’s Catherine Mwape by a unanimous 5-0 decision to secure a place in the gold-medal bout.
Having not dropped a single bout in the competition, Preeti entered the final with confidence and lived up to expectationsHer aggressive approach, quick footwork and accurate punching proved too much for Delgado, who struggled to match the Indian’s intensity.
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The gold medal is another major achievement for Preeti, who has steadily established herself as one of India’s top boxersRanked World No3 in the bantamweight category, she once again showed why she is among the leading contenders on the international stage.
Preeti Pawar has built an impressive record on the international stage over the last few yearsShe won the gold medal at the 2026 Asian Boxing Championships and followed it up with another gold at the 2025 World Boxing Cup Final.
She was a bronze medallist at the 2023 Asian Games and also represented India at the 2024 Paris OlympicsEarlier in her career, she claimed a bronze medal at the 2022 Asian Boxing Championships before winning gold at the 2024 ASBC Asian U-22 & Youth Boxing Championships in Kazakhstan.
