India's Parveen Hooda pulled off a stunning 3-2 victory over former world champion Chen Nien-Chin to clinch the women's 65kg gold medal at the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya on Friday.
The Indian boxer held her nerve in a closely fought final against the Chinese Taipei star to secure the top step of the podium.
The gold marks a remarkable turnaround for Hooda, who had won bronze at the Hangzhou Asian Games before the medal was later stripped following a 22-month suspension for whereabouts failures.
After serving her suspension, Hooda returned to the ring and moved up to the 65kg category. She booked her place in the Asian Games final with a convincing 5-0 win over China's Li Shu in the semifinal.
Hooda then produced another composed performance against Chen, edging the former world champion 3-2 to secure the Asian Games title.
For Hooda, the victory completes a remarkable comeback after the setback at the previous edition. This time, she leaves the Asian Games with a gold medal around her neck.
The 26-year-old boxer entered the gold-medal bout unbeaten and had looked in complete control throughout her campaign.
Hooda received a first-round walkover before producing a dominant 5-0 victory over Uzbekistan's Navbakhor Khamidova in the quarterfinal.
She followed it up with another unanimous 5-0 win against China's Li Shu in the semifinal to book her place in the gold-medal clash.
The final began on an even note, with both boxers cautious in the opening exchanges.
Parveen was the more aggressive of the two, using her straight jab and trying to close the distance. Her approach earned her the first round, with all five judges scoring it in her favour.
Chen responded strongly in the second round, becoming more proactive and landing hooks as Parveen looked to counter with her jab.
The judges unanimously awarded the second round to Chen, setting up a tense finish.
The third round turned into a fierce exchange of punches, with both boxers going on the attack. Chen managed to push Parveen onto the back foot at times, but the Indian remained composed under pressure.
The closely fought contest eventually went Parveen's way, with the judges handing her a 3-2 split-decision victory and the Asian Games 65kg gold medal.
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