After a below-par outing in Paris 2024, where the boxing contingent returned empty-handed, the Boxing Federation of India (BFI) went back to Santiago Nieva, appointing Swedish high-performance expert as the head coach of the national women’s boxing team ahead of a crucial new Olympic cycle.
Nieva, who earlier served as India’s High Performance Director from 2017 to 2021, returns with a clear mandate, to strengthen the women’s programme and build sustained global competitiveness ahead of the Los Angeles 2028 Olympics.
His previous stint in India left a deep impact on the country’s high-performance structure. During his tenure, India recorded two podium finishes at the 2019 men’s World Championships with Amit Panghal’s historic silver and Manish Kaushik’s bronze, followed by the country’s largest-ever Olympic boxing contingent at Tokyo 2020, where Lovlina Borgohain claimed a bronze medal.
As the new Olympic cycle intensifies and the women’s event expands to seven weight categories, Nieva is expected to work on establishing India as a consistent medal force across the board.
The women’s national team has already shown significant progress in recent months, highlighted by a dominant performance at the World Boxing Cup Finals 2025 in Greater Noida, where India swept the medals with seven gold, one silver and two bronze, many of them in key Olympic divisions.
Nieva’s return signals a strategic investment in long-term Olympic preparation, reinforcing the BFI’s push toward scientific training, advanced high-performance systems and world-class coaching standards.
“Super excited to come back to India. I had five wonderful years here in my previous stint. I am very much looking forward to this next chapter, and hopefully, we can create something big together. I have had great success working with women boxers in the past. There is a huge potential within the Indian women’s team, and in LA (Olympics 2028), we’ll be aiming for something big and create history,” Nieva said.
With more than two decades of elite coaching experience, Nieva has held prominent high-performance roles across global boxing systems. After his earlier tenure in India, he served as national head coach and technical lead of Boxing Australia’s High Performance Unit, and previously shaped Sweden’s national programme as head coach and sports director, guiding athletes through World Championships, continental events, Olympic qualifiers and multisport Games.
BFI president Ajay Singh welcomed the appointment, saying, “Santiago’s appointment signals an important step forward for our women’s programme. He brings a top-tier blend of technical excellence and international insight that will add tremendous value to the system.”
“Our athletes have shown they can rise to the world’s toughest platforms, and with Santiago guiding their progression, we are confident of strengthening India’s presence and ambition at the world’s biggest stages,” Singh added.
Singh also acknowledged the contribution of D Chandralal, the outgoing head coach of the elite women’s team, noting that he will continue to play an important role in the national coaching setup.