Shiva Thapa and L Devendro Singh advanced to the second round as established names made winning starts at the National men's Boxing Championships. Shiva, a former World Championships bronze-winner and three-time Asian Championships medallist, sailed past Tripura's Naveen Kumar in his opening bout of the lightweight (60kg) category.
Shiva is representing Assam in the Championships, having claimed the gold medal for the state in the last edition of the event.
Devendro, a Commonwealth Games and Asian Championships silver-medallist, got the better of Arunachal Pradesh's Kumar Beyong in his first-round contest of the flyweight (52kg) category.
The Manipuri, who won a silver medal in the previous edition for his home state, however, sustained a cut above his eye during the bout.
Three-time King's Cup gold-medallist K Shyam Kumar, competing for the Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB), defeated H P Kumar Meitei of Manipur in the first round of the light flyweight (49kg) division.
Over 300 boxers from 37 states and sports promotion boards are competing in the championships.
