Sakshi Chaudhary
As the Asian Games draw near, all eyes are on India’s boxing contingent, and among the fiercest contenders stepping into the ring is Sakshi Chaudhary.
Sakshi, the 25-year-old from Bhiwani, Haryana, is an orthodox Indian amateur boxer and Havildar in the Indian Army who stands 5’5½” (166 cm) tall and currently competes in the 51kg weight category, having previously fought at 54kg and 57kg.
Overview
Coming from a farming family and inspired by Vijender Singh’s historic Olympic bronze in 2008, Manoj, a farmer, made an extraordinary sacrifice for his daughter.
He would travel nearly 80 kilometres every day so Sakshi could train at the Bhiwani Boxing Club under renowned coach Jagdish Singh.
She took up the sport in 2012 at the age of nine and trained initially under Jagdish Singh, the same coach who mentored Vijender Singh, before moving to the Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports in Patiala under the Sports Authority of India.
She currently serves as a Havildar in the Indian Army, training at the Army Sports Institute in Pune.
Her rise was far from a straight line. A serious shoulder injury threatened to end her career, forcing her to miss the 2022 Commonwealth Games and the 2023 Asian Games, years an athlete can rarely afford to lose.
Through that stretch, her father’s unwavering belief kept her going, and from 2019 onwards, the Virat Kohli Foundation backed her recovery and training, support Sakshi has repeatedly credited as central to her comeback.
She has said Kohli’s contribution went beyond money; he advised her to stay calm and focus on performance rather than pressure, advice she leaned on heading into Glasgow.
Career Highlights
- 2015: Gold medal, 54kg category, AIBA Junior World Boxing Championships (Taipei)
- 2017: Gold medal, bantamweight (54kg) category, AIBA Youth Women’s World Boxing Championships (Guwahati)
- 2018: Gold medal, bantamweight category, AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships (Budapest)
- 2020: Reached the quarter-finals of the Asian/Oceania Olympic Qualifiers (Amman)
- 2025: Gold medal, 54kg category, World Boxing Cup (Astana), defeating USA’s Yoseline Perez by unanimous decision
- 2026: Gold medal, women’s 51kg category, Commonwealth Games (Glasgow), defeating England’s Ruby White 5–0
2026 Commonwealth Games: Her Path to Gold
She produced a clean 5–0 sweep across every round:
- Round of 16: Defeated Lethabo Modukanele (Botswana), 5–0
- Quarter-final: Defeated Caitlyn Fryers (Northern Ireland), 5–0
- Semi-final: Defeated Amber-Jane Wall (Canada), 5–0
- Final: Defeated Ruby White (England), 5–0
Her victory contributed to India’s standout performance in boxing at the Glasgow Games, where the team won 10 medals, including seven gold.
Titles & Recognition
Per her own athlete profile, Sakshi holds:
- 3× World Boxing Championship titles (youth/junior level)
- 1× Junior World Champion
- 10× National Champion
Bio Snapshot
- Full name: Sakshi Chaudhary (also referred to as Sakshi Ghanghas Chaudhary)
- Hometown: Bhiwani, Haryana
- Coach: Jagdish Singh (early years); currently trains under coach Chhote Lal at NIS Patiala
- Family background: Agricultural family
- Service: Havildar, Indian Army
Next target: Asian Games, with the Olym
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