India’s Jaismine Lamboria is chasing more medals and accolades ahead of the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Scotland, later this month.
The 24-year-old enters the tournament as the first boxer ever to win a gold medal at the World Boxing Championships, having made history in Liverpool in 2025 when her 57kg final was the first to conclude.
Lamboria arrives in Glasgow among India’s hopefuls to achieve Commonwealth Games success but insists she does not feel the weight of expectation from her nation ahead of a crucial tournament.
“Right now, I don’t feel any pressure because our preparation is going really very well and we are prepared to perform our best,” Lamboria told World Boxing. “For me it is more important that I give it my all. I can’t focus on results, but I’m hoping to get a gold medal.”
Lamboria’s path to this point has been far from conventional.
The fighting city of Bhiwani in India is where Lamboria first forged her way as an Olympic-style boxer, however, she was not the first in her family to lace up the gloves.
“It all started by watching my uncles competing on an international level,” Lamboria said. “I grew up in a place where in almost every house you can find a boxer. The place is called Bhiwani, so that’s why I started my boxing journey, watching them from my childhood.
“My uncles, Sandeep and Praveen, both boxed at international level and they told me I had to start boxing. From day one they have guided me and they are my personal coaches as well. My family is very supportive.”
Few boxers have a fighting family quite like Lamboria’s.
Her great-grandfather was a heavyweight boxer and two-time Asian Games gold medallist, while her grandfather, Hon. Captain Chander Bhan Lamboria, was a wrestler. Her uncles, who introduced her to boxing, also won national titles.
Their guidance helped Lamboria finally claim a gold medal at last year’s World Boxing Championships in Liverpool, England, after having previously fallen short.
“That was a special moment for me because I participated in the World Championships in 2022 and 2023, but I came back without a medal,” she said. “So, in 2025 it was a special moment for me. It was the first time for me becoming world champion.
“It was a really proud and emotional moment for me, and I have gratitude towards the people who helped me on this journey, the Boxing Federation of India and all the coaches who helped me through my whole journey. That was a dream come true for me.”
The nation of India, a country more known for cricket than fighting, is slowly paving its way as a dominant force in Olympic-style boxing, with fighters such as Nishant Dev making the switch to the professional ranks in recent years.
“Right now in India, boxing is going really very well and Indian boxers are performing very well at an international level, both amateur and professional,” Lamboria said. “We have quality boxers and we have a number of boxers here. We can compete with each other and we make a good team.
“I watched Mary Kom. She’s a six-time world champion and Olympic bronze medallist. She’s a role model for every Indian boxer. Right now we also have Nikhat Zareen and Lovlina Borgohain.
“Indian boxing also did very well at the last World Championships. We won four medals, which is great. We are performing very well and we will do even better in the future.”
The Commonwealth Games represent another opportunity for Lamboria to continue her rise, but her biggest ambition lies further ahead. Having gained valuable experience at the Paris Olympics in 2024, she already has her sights set on Los Angeles 2028.
“Paris was my first Olympics and I learnt a lot there,” she said. “Watching the best fighters and all the different matches was a very good experience for me as a young boxer.”
And Lamboria’s ambition for the tournament?
“My dream is to get an Olympic gold medal,” she said.
Tom Ivers for World Boxing