GUWAHATI, Oct 2: Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma spoke to boxer Lovlina Borgohain over the phone on Thursday and congratulated her on winning gold at the 2026 Asian Games, saying he would let her “soak the moment” before meeting her after her return to Guwahati.
Sarma said Lovlina was “super elated” after her victory and that people across Assam were celebrating her achievement.
“Just spoke to Lovlina over call and extended my best wishes on behalf of the people of Assam on her birthday as well as for this prized Gold at the Asian Games. She is super elated and so are we. I’ll let her soak the moment and meet her when she’s back to Guwahati,” Sarma wrote on X.
The Chief Minister also hailed Lovlina as Assam’s “Golden Girl” after she defeated China’s Ziyi Bao 5-0 in the women’s 75kg final in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
“There can be no bigger gift to oneself on a birthday than bagging the ultimate honour for the country,” Sarma said in another post, noting that the victory came on Lovlina’s 29th birthday. “Assam awaits your glorious return,” he added.
Lovlina had reached the final after defeating Kazakhstan’s Natalya Bogdanova 3-2 in a closely fought semi-final. The victory made her the first Indian woman boxer to reach two consecutive Asian Games finals.
She had won silver in the same 75kg category at the Hangzhou Asian Games. Her latest victory improved on that result and added an Asian Games gold to a career that already included an Olympic bronze medal.
Lovlina’s father, Tiken Borgohain, had earlier said the family hoped she would win gold as a special birthday gift. Her route to the final had included a quarter-final victory over South Korea’s Seong Suyeon.
The gold capped Lovlina’s 29th birthday with one of the biggest victories of her career.
