Nagoya Setback for Nepal’s Boxing Hope as Mandengbam Dominates

In a quiet corner of Nagoya’s Nishio Gymnasium, a decorated Nepali hope ran into a hard, disciplined wall of Indian boxing.

Chandra Bahadur Thapa Magar, Nepal’s bronze medallist from last year’s IBA Men’s World Championships and ranked third in the world in the elite men’s 51–54 kg division, fell in the preliminary round of the Asian Games to India’s Jadumani Singh Mandengbam in the men’s up to 55 kg category.

There was no debate on the cards. The judges were unanimous: 5–0 to Mandengbam.

One‑sided on the scorecards

The bout went the full distance, three rounds of three minutes, but the scoring told the story. All five judges leaned the same way, handing Mandengbam scores of 30:27, 29:28, 29:28, 30:27 and 30:27.

Magar never stopped looking for a way in. He kept trying to close the distance, to turn the contest into the kind of fight that had carried him to a world medal. Mandengbam kept finding answers, staying composed, picking his moments.

Even the one dramatic moment late on went against the Nepali. In the third round, Magar was ruled to have suffered a knockdown after going to the canvas following a push from his opponent. It summed up his afternoon: every marginal call, every tight exchange, seemed to tilt away from him.

For a boxer who had walked into Nagoya as Nepal’s flag bearer at the opening ceremony, it was a brutal reminder of how quickly a tournament can turn.

A rough start for Nepal’s boxing team

Magar’s exit marked Nepal’s third straight defeat in the preliminary rounds, a tough early chapter for a squad that arrived with seven boxers and genuine optimism.

On the same day, Ramisha Shrestha bowed out in the women’s up to 51 kg category. She lost by the same stark margin, a unanimous 0–5 decision, to Vietnamese boxer Thi Tham Nguyen.

A day earlier, Dan Bahadur Darlami had also seen his campaign cut short. Fighting in the men’s up to 70 kg division, he was outpointed by Iraq’s Ali Qasim Hamdan Al‑Sarray, again on a unanimous decision.

Three fights. Three defeats. No controversy, no split calls, just clear verdicts against Nepali boxers at the first hurdle.

Others still standing

The tournament is far from over for Nepal, though. Four boxers remain in the draw, each carrying the weight of both opportunity and response.

In the men’s up to 60 kg category, Hagendra Roka Magar was scheduled to face Macau’s Elvin John Reyes Salinas. Higher up the scales, in the up to 90 kg class, Rabin Nepal was lined up against Thailand’s Jakkaphong Yomkhot, a meeting that promises heavy leather and little margin for error.

On the women’s side, Kusum Tamang was due to meet China’s Shu Li in the up to 65 kg division, a stern test against a boxer from one of Asia’s deepest programmes. Asmita Duwal, meanwhile, continues her campaign in the women’s up to 54 kg category, aiming to punch through the gloom that has settled over Nepal’s early results.

Pressure on a standard‑bearer

For Magar, this defeat will sting. A world bronze medallist, a top‑three ranking in his usual weight class, the honour of carrying his country’s flag into the Games – everything about his profile suggested a deep run.

Instead, he leaves Nagoya with a scoreline that offers no hiding place.

But tournaments often turn on moments like this. A leading light falls, and the question hangs in the air for those still in the changing room, hands wrapped, waiting for their call: does the setback drag the team down, or does it light a fire?

Nepal’s remaining boxers are about to provide the answer.