Pooja Rani Wiki, Height, Weight, Age, Boyfriend, Family, Biography & More

Pooja Rani Bohra is an Indian pugilist. Pooja was the first person to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Wiki/Biography

Pooja Rani Boora was born on Sunday, 17 February 1991 (age 30 years; as of 2021) in Nimriwali village of Bhiwani district, Haryana. Her zodiac sign is Aquarius. She developed an interest in boxing while she was in her teens. However, it took her around a year to enroll herself in the Hawa Singh Boxing Academy in Bhiwani. Initially, she kept it a secret from her father as she was scared that her father would scold her. She often stayed away from her home to hide her injuries from her father. Talking about it in an interview, she said,

If I got injured in training, I would not return home so that no one saw the cut or the swelling.”

She further said,

My mother would lie to my father and tell him that I’m staying over at a friend’s house to study, while I stayed over at my coach’s house, icing the injury.”

When her father came to know about Pooja’s involvement in boxing, he rebuked her and also stopped her from attending boxing classes. When Pooja’s coach Sanjay Kumar Sheoran came to know about it, he visited her home and requested her father to allow her to compete in the competitions. However, her father did not agree to it. It took Pooja around six months to convince her father to take up boxing as a career option.

Physical Appearance

Height: 5′ 8″

Weight (approx.): 75 Kg

Figure Measurements (approx.): 34-30-34

Hair Colour: Black

Eye Colour: Black

Family

Pooja’s father, Rajbir Singh, is a former sub-inspector. His mother, Damyanti Devi, is a homemaker. She has an elder brother named Arvind Bohra and an elder sister named Poonam Bohra.

Career

Pooja started her boxing career in 2009. She participated in the National Youth Boxing Championship in 2009 and bagged a silver medal after defeating Preeti Beniwal, a leading boxer from Haryana. Pooja then won a silver medal at the Asian Boxing Championship in 2012.

In the same year, she won a silver medal at the Arafura Games held in Australia. The win helped her become one of the contenders to qualify for the 2016 Rio Olympics. However, her defeat in the AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships in 2016, resulted in her disqualification for the Olympics. Pooja also represented India in the 2014 Commonwealth Games. However, she lost to the English boxer Savannah Marshal in it. In 2018, she participated in AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championship but made an exit in the first round itself. In 2020, she became the first Indian to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics after defeating Pornnipa Chutee in the quarter-final round of women’s 75 kg at the Asia-Oceania Oly qualifiers.

In addition to boxing, Pooja is appointed as an Income Tax inspector at the Haryana government.

Medals

International

• Bronze in China open Boxing Guiyang city (2011)

• Silver in China open Boxing Guiyang city (2011)

• Silver in 6th Asian Women Boxing championship held in Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia (2012)

• Bronze in 17th Asian Games held in Incheon, Korea (2014)

• Bronze in 3rd Nations cup held in Verbas, Serbia (2014)

• Bronze in 7th Asian Women Boxing championship held in Wulanchabu, China (2015)

• Gold in 12th South Asian Games held in Shillong (2016)

• Bronze in 5th Nations cup held in Ruma, Serbia (2016)

National

• Gold in 4th Senior North Zone Boxing championship held in Chandigarh (2009)

• Silver in 4th Youth women National boxing championship held in Goa (2009)

• Gold in Federation cup held in Nainital, Uttrakhand (2009)

• Gold in Federation cup held in Nainital, Uttrakhand (2010)

• Bronze in 11th Senior women National Boxing championship held in Thrissur, Kerala (2010)

• Gold in All India Inter-University held in MLS Udaipur (2011)

• Gold in 34th National Games held in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand (2011)

• Silver in 12th Senior Women National Boxing Championship held in Bhopal, M. P. (2011)

• Gold in 13th Senior Women National Boxing Championship held in Guwahati, Assam (2012)

• Gold in 14th Senior Women National Boxing Championship held in Khatima, Uttrakhand (2013)

• Gold in 16th Senior Women National Boxing Championship held in Bongaigaon, Assam (2015)

State

• Gold in 5th Youth women State Boxing championship held in Balabhgarh, Faridabad (2009)

• Gold in 8th Senior Women state Boxing championship held in Bhiwani (2009)

• Gold in 9th Senior Women State Boxing championship held in Samalkha, Panipat (2010)

• Gold in 10th Senior Women State Boxing championship held in Bucholi, Mahendergarh (2011)

• Gold in 12th Senior Women State Boxing championship held in UBA Hissar (2013)

• Gold in 13th Senior Women State Boxing championship held in Bhiwani (2014)

• Gold in 14th Senior Women State Boxing championship held in Rohtak (2015)

Favourite Things

• Travel Destination: Germany

Facts/Trivia

• Pooja loves travelling in her leisure time.

• She is very particular about her fitness and visits the gym daily.

  Pooja Rani inside the gym

• Pooja is a pet lover and owns a pet dog named Jerry.

  Pooja Rani’s pet dog

• In 2015, she received Bhim Award for her contribution to boxing.

  Pooja Rani with Bhim Award

• In 2016, Pooja burnt her hand during the Diwali celebrations and had to undergo surgery. Due to her surgery, Pooja remained away from boxing for 7-8 months. After recovering she returned to the game but shortly after suffered a shoulder injury and was set for another lengthy layoff.

• In 2021, she was featured on the cover of Kreeda magazine.

  Pooja Rani on the cover of the Kreeda magazine

• She considers the American boxing legend Claressa Shields her idol.

• During an interview, Pooja recalled how she used to hide her bruises and injuries suffered in the game from her parents. She said,
  

  My parents were dead against my plans of making a career out of boxing. My father would say, “Acche Bache Boxing Nahin Khelte (good children don’t play boxing)”. Such was the situation that I feared my father would stop me from going to the boxing ring if he saw my injuries. So I would conceal my injuries from him as well as my mother.”