Newly-appointed Indian women's boxing head coach Santiago Nieva aims to push the squad "beyond a single bronze" at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The former high-performance director returns with a proven track record, targeting history amid the team's strong 2025 form including World Championship golds.
Santiago Nieva, who served as India's high-performance director from 2017-2022, returns as head coach of the women's national boxing team. During his prior tenure, he oversaw Amit Panghal's historic World Championship silver, Manish Kaushik's bronze, and India's largest Tokyo Olympics contingent where Lovlina Borgohain won bronze.
Now focusing exclusively on women ahead of the LA 2028 cycle, Nieva praised the current squad's potential after their stellar 2025: four World Championship medals (two golds) and a 10-medal sweep (7 golds) at World Boxing Cup Finals in Greater Noida. He plans gradual improvements, starting with selection policy reviews for 2026's Asian/Commonwealth Games.
Boxing Federation of India President Ajay Singh hailed Nieva's technical expertise and international insight, replacing D Chandralal (who stays on staff). Nieva begins formally in a month post-visa, emphasizing observation before changes.
Key highlights
-
Target: Multiple Olympic medals at LA 2028, beyond Paris' single bronze.
-
Background: Ex-HPD (2017-22); recent Australia national coach.
-
2025 success: 2 World C'ship golds; 7 golds at World Boxing Cup.
-
Priorities: Selection policy, high-performance systems for all weights.
Sources: New Indian Express; Olympics.com; The Statesman; News18; Telangana Today.