Nattanicha wins Thailand’s first women’s boxing gold at Asian Games
The boxer known as Focus beat North Korea’s Pang Chol-mi 4-1 in the women’s 54kg final, taking Thailand’s gold medal tally to 15.
Nattanicha Jongprongklang became Thailand’s first Asian Games champion in women’s boxing with a 4-1 victory over North Korea’s Pang Chol-mi in the 54kg final at Aichi-Nagoya 2026. Her win delivered the Thai team’s 15th gold of the Games.
Known as Focus, the Thai-New Zealand boxer sought to connect with clean punches but suffered a knockdown in round two during a series of attacks by Pang. Nattanicha recovered, completed the three-round contest and received the judges’ decision.
Pang entered the final with two world flyweight titles, won in 2018 and 2025. She also took an Olympic bronze medal in the women’s bantamweight category in 2024.
Women’s boxing joined the Asian Games programme in 2010, but no Thai woman had previously won gold in the sport. Nattanicha’s victory also gave Thailand its only boxing medal at the Aichi-Nagoya Games so far.
