KATHMANDU, SEPTEMBER 25

Nepali boxer Rabin Thapa advanced to the round of 16 in the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou today.

Competing in the below-51kg weight category, Thapa defeated Indonesian boxer Dio Koebanu 4-1 in the round of 32 bout at the Hangzhou Gymnasium. The 23-year-old Thapa, who also participated in the World Championships in Belgrade in 2021 and Tashkent earlier this year, will face North Korean opponent for a place in the quarter-finals.

Two other Nepali boxers faced defeat. Binita Thapa Magar lost to Chinese Taipei's Nien Chin Chen on Referee Stop Contest (RSC) decision in the first round of the women's below-66kg category, while Dipesh Lama suffered a 5-0 loss at the hands of India's Nishan Dev in men's below-71kg section.

In taekwondo, Anjali Tamang had a mixed bag after she won the first bout and faced defeat in the pre-quarters.

Tamang defeated Cambodia's Lyden Kry 2-0 in the women's below-49kg weight category to make it to the round of 16.

Tamang won it 10-4 in the second round including two kicks on her opponent's head after both players earned seven points in the first round.

The 20-year-old Tamang then returned to face Thailand's Panipak Wongpattanakit at the LA Sports Centre for a place in the quarter-finals. But she faced a 2-0 defeat that ended her challenge in the Asian Games. Tamang could not score a single point as he lost 12-0 and 10-0 in the two rounds.

Another player, Rahul Kumal faced defeat against Saudi Arabia's Riad Nasser A Hamdi in the round of 32 bout. Kumal lost 4-1 in the first round and suffered a 12-5 defeat in the second round. On the first day, poomsae players Prem Bahadur Limbu and Swastika Tamang lost their matches.

Judokas Manita Shrestha Pradhan, Janga Bahadur Saru, and 13th South Asian Games gold medallist Punam Shrestha lost in their first-round bouts. Shrestha Pradhan faced defeat against Maysa Pardayeva of Turkmenistan in the women's below-57kg weight category. The bout lasted for just 53 seconds after Pardayeva scored Ippon in the round of 16 clash.

Saru survived for two minutes and 28 seconds against John Viron Ferrer of the Philippines in the men's below-81kg category. Likewise, Shrestha faced defeat against Mongolia's Nyam-Erdene Batsuuri in two minutes and 33 seconds in the round of 16 clash.

In the U-23 women's 3X3 basketball, Nepal faced a 22-4 defeat against Japan. Mina Gurung and Garisha Silwal scored two points each for Nepal.

Nepal will face Chinese Taipei on Wednesday and will play against Kazakhstan on Friday in Group B matches.

In cycling, Nepali players Suraj Rana Magar and Usha Khanal both failed to complete the course. In the women's cross-country Olympic event, Khanal could not complete the 20.56km distance after she suffered from hyperthermia.

Rana Magar did not finish the 25.5km distance in the men's cross-country Olympic event after he got injured in the second lap.

In wushu, Sushmita Tamang finished eighth in the women's Changquan event. She earned 9.410 points in the 11-player competition. Pasang Sherpa remained at the bottom in the Taijiquan event after he accumulated 9.013 points. Sherpa finished 17th in the men's Taijiquan and Taijijian All-Round event. He accumulated 8.973 points in the 18-men field.

In sansau, Saman Ghushry faced a 2-0 defeat at the hands of Thailand's Chanachai Kamolklang in the men's 65kg weight category bout.

In fencing, none of the Nepali players were able to register a victory. Payas Yonjan and Rajendra Gajurel faced defeats in all five matches in men's Individual Sabre, while Mandira Thapa and Goma Acharya also lost their all five matches in women's Individual Foil competition.

In tennis, Pradip Khadka was stopped in the second round after he faced a 5-7, 6-1 defeat against Japan's Shintaro Mochizuki in the men's singles match on Monday. Khadka had bagged a double bagel against Timor-Leste's Antonio Mendes in the first round match yesterday. Another Nepali player Abhishek Bastola faced a 2-6, 0-6 defeat against Hong Kong's Chak Lam Coleman Wong.

In mixed doubles, Bastolaand Abhilasha Bista failed to win a single point against Indonesia's Christopher Benjamin Rungkat and Aldila Sutjiadi, while the women's double pair of Bista and Mahika Rana suffered a 6-1, 6-0 loss at the hands of South Korea's Dayeon Back and Boyoung Jeong.

In women's football, Nepal suffered a 8-0 defeat against Japan. Nepal had faced a 2-0 loss in their first match against Vietnam and they will face Bangladesh in the third and last group stage match on Thursday.

In swimming, Alexander Gadegaard Shah finished eighth in the men's 50m freestyle heats with a timing of 24.15 seconds, while Duana Lama was at the bottom in the women's 200m freestyle heats in two minutes and 16.29 seconds.

A version of this article appears in the print on September 26, 2023, of The Himalayan Times