Thailand pins hopes on golfers and boxers at Tokyo Olympics

Thailand sent 42 athletes to the Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan. Sports officials believe that the Kingdom’s best hopes to capture gold medals rests with its boxers, martial artists, badminton stars and top-ranked women golfers.

Thailand’s professional golfers have been among the top performers on the Ladies Professional Golf Tour in recent years, and so several of them are considered to have good potential to capture medals. Among those are Ariya Jutanugarn, a former world number one, and Paphangkorn “Patty“ Tavatanakit, who just won her first LPGA Tour in April.

Thai team supervisors have been taking all necessary precautions to keep their athletes healthy and safe during the competition.

Thailand, which frequently excels during the regional Southeast Asia Games, and respectably at the Asian Games, both qualifying events for the Olympics, won two gold medals at the last Olympic games in Brazil in 2016.

Sports Authority of Thailand Governor Gongsak Yodmani said that aside from the women golfers, the athletes with most medal promise were taekwondo star Panipak Wongpattanakit, mixed doubles badminton players Dechapol Puavaranukroh and Sapsiree Taerattanachai, skeet shooter Sutiya Jiewchaloemmit, and boxers Thitisan Panmod, Chatchai-decha Butdee and Sudaporn Seesondee.

On July 24, 2021, Female taekwando star Panipak Wongpattanakit, who is nicknamed ‘Tennis’, won Thailand’s first gold medal in the women’s taekwondo in the 49kg category at the Tokyo games.

Thailand frequently contends in boxing in the lighter divisions of the sport. The fighters often begin competing in international boxing after already gaining years of experience in Muay Thai. In Muay Thai, fighters are allowed to kick as well as punch.

Photo courtesy of: https://olympics.com/ioc/thailand