Eight members of Indian boxing squad in Turkey test positive for COVID-19, quarantined in Istanbul

New Delhi: Eight members of an Indian boxing squad, including three pugilists, tested positive for COVID-19 during a competition trip to Turkey and have been quarantined in Istanbul. Commonwealth Games silver-medallist Gaurav Solanki (57kg), Prayag Chouhan (75kg) and Brijesh Yadav (81kg) tested positive for the virus a week back, leading to them being quarantined following the event which ended on 19 March. Coaches Dharmendra Yadav and Santosh Birmole, physiotherapists Shikha Kedia and Dr Umesh along with video analyst Nitin Kumar are the others in isolation, a team source told PTI. They were in Istanbul to compete in the Bosphorus Tournament. Solanki had claimed the lone medal – a bronze – among men. Among women, Nikhat Zareen (51kg) had also fetched a bronze helping India finish with two medals overall. The others who travelled for the tournament were Lalith Prasad (52kg), Shiva Thapa (63kg), Duryodhan Singh Negi (69kg), Naman Tanwar (91kg) and Krishnan Sharma (+91kg). The women’s group featured Zareen, Sonia Lather (57kg), Parveen (60kg), Jyoti Grewal (69kg) and Pooja Saini (75kg). The ones who have tested positive will have to wait for at least one more week before they undergo a fresh COVID-19 test to ascertain their recovery and clear the passage for a flight home.