Packing a solid punch
M.S. Unnikrishnan

INDIAN boxing seems to be in a resurgent mode with Akhil Kumar becoming the second pugilist to qualify for the Beijing Olympics, which would be his second successive Olympics. Featherweight boxer Anthresh Lalit Lakra had attained the qualifying mark when he reached the quarterfinal of the World Championship at Chicago in November last year.

Money speaks the universal language of success as monetary incentives were the motivating factors in Akhil clinching the gold and an Olympic berth in the Asian qualifying event at Bangkok, with the "best boxer" title to boot. The 27-year-old Commonwealth Games gold medallist from Bhiwani braved a wrist injury, which was yet to fully heal, as he punched his way past Olympic silver medallist Worapoj Pitchkoom to glory.

Quick on his feet, Akhil packs quite a punch too. "I have the confidence, the speed and power, but my task would be complete only if I win an Olympic medal," Akhil said on his arrival in New Delhi.

He said it was the systematic training and guidance by coaches Gurbax Singh Sandhu and Cuban B.I. Fernandez which helped him polish his skills and triumph at the top level.

Akhil is a recipient of a monthly scholarship of around Rs 50,000 from the International Boxing Federation and another Rs 5,000 or so per month from the Mittal Trust for being a medal prospect for the Beijing Olympics. It was, thus, in his own interest to push himself to the limit and achieve success.

Otherwise, he stood to lose the scholarship amount. With his financial requirements having taken care of, the bantamweight (54 kg) boxer could fully concentrate on his sport, and the results are now all too evident.

"Akhil is a boxer with determination, skill, strength and the drive to achieve something. I have 70 per cent hope on him to win a medal in the Olympics," said former national coach and Dronacharya awardee Om Prakash Bhardwaj. If Akhil strikes it big in Beijing, he would be the first Indian boxer to win an Olympic medal.

G. Manoharan, also a bantamweight boxer, came very close to bagging a medal in the 1980 Moscow Olympics, had he not been disqualified. Manoharan, having won the first two rounds, was in devastating form in the quarterfinal as well, but he failed to heed the referee’s signal to stop the bout before he floored his opponent with a knockout punch. A semifinal round would have at least fetched him a bronze.

Manoj Pingle was the second Indian boxer who raised hopes of a medal in the 1988 Olympics in Seoul. After winning the first two rounds in a convincing fashion, Pingle lost in the quarterfinal, to the disappointment of the large Indian boxing fraternity.

The Indian Amateur Boxing Federation (IABF) is expecting at least three more Olympic berths in the third and final qualifying event in Kazakhstan. All gold medal winners in the Super Cup Championship, to be held in Akola (Maharashtra) on February 12-13, will be fielded for the qualifying event from March 15, in which boxers from 21 nations will compete for Olympic slots in several weight categories.

IABF secretary Muralidharan Raja said hopes were pinned on Vijender (75 kg), Amandeep (48 kg) and Jitender (51 kg) to make the Olympic cut. If this sport is looking up in the country, it’s largely due to the efforts of the government. Boxing camps in all age groups, including women, juniors and sub-juniors, are held round the year, and the pugilists are given foreign exposure periodically.

The government has spent crores on the development of boxing in the country, and as a result, a strong base has been created to shape talent. True, the IABF, under the stewardship of Abhay Singh Chautala, with support from vice-president Bhupinder Singh and director-general of Police R.S. Dalal, has also ensured that the government support is not frittered away by meaningfully utilising the resources, and creating a virtual boxing hub in Haryana.

There is a boxing club in virtually every district of Haryana in which 25 to 30 boys/girls practise. Akhil, who hails from Bhiwani, is also a product of such a boxing culture as barring Lakra, most of the Olympic hopefuls are from Haryana.

"If other states emulate the example of Haryana, not only boxing but other sports will also flourish," observed Bhardwaj, who is also a national junior talent spotter.

Bhardwaj, waxing eloquent at the proliferation of boxing clubs in Haryana, noted that in the not-too-distant future, "Haryana will emerge as the second Cuba (the Latin American country is famous for its boxing talent, with the dashing, multiple Olympic champion Teofilo Stevenson being their famous mascot)".

The glory days of Indian boxing may not be here again so soon, but Akhil’s success has rekindled a ray of hope of a bright new dawn.

What a sight

HITTING a hole-in-one is hard enough. Now consider that Leo Fiyalko is 92 years old and blind.

"I was just trying to put the ball on the green," he said.

Fiyalko, who has macular degeneration and has been playing golf since he moved to St Petersburg from Warren, Ohio, in the 1950s, scored the ace with a 5-iron on the 110-yard fifth hole at the Cove Cay Country Club in Clearwater (Florida) recently.

Fiyalko tees off every Thursday with a group of golfers ranging in age from 70 to more than 90. He used to have a seven-handicap, but needs help lining up shots and finding golf balls because he has peripheral vision only in his right eye. According to his daughter Sandra Taylor, he has to sit sideways to watch TV.

Jean Gehring was in Fiyalko’s foursome and watched his swing on the hole-in-one. "I could tell it went on the green," Gehring said. "When we got up there I didn’t see it. I looked in the hole and there it was."

Gehring said Fiyalko was modest about the shot and had to be prodded to tell his wife about it after the round.

Fiyalko’s friends at the club presented him with a plaque to commemorate the feat. It bears a picture of the fifth hole and a line that reads: "Leo Fiyalko, hole-in-one, five iron, 110 yards."

As Sue Rogan, who has run the Twilighters Club for the past seven years, announced that she was presenting a plaque to Fiyalko, he buried his face in his hands and shook his head.

"Oh boy," he said. — Agencies

IN THE NEWS
Olympic goal
Kusum Arora

SHE has set her sights on securing an Olympic berth for India. Mamta Kharab, the captain of the women’s hockey team, knows that her girls need to play outstandingly to win the qualifier at Kazan, Russia, from April 19-27.

India have been pitted against USA, Netherlands Antilles, Russia, Belgium and Chinese Taipei. "I’m hopeful that we will make it to Beijing," Arjuna awardee Mamta said on the sidelines of the 55th Rakshak Senior National Women’s Hockey Championship in Jalandhar recently.

The Haryana girl shot into the limelight when she scored a golden goal against England in the final at the 2002 Commonwealth Games in Manchester. She also struck the match-winner in the semifinal versus New Zealand.

"The Commonwealth victory gave a big fillip to women’s hockey in India. We won the gold after a long gap of 32 years," she said.

A product of the Sports Training Centre, SAI, Chandigarh, Mamta made her international debut in 1999 at the under-21 tournament in New Jersey, USA. For her outstanding performance at the Commonwealth Games, the Arjuna Award was conferred on her in 2003.

The forward, who was earlier working as a section officer in the Railways, was recently appointed as DSP in the Haryana Police. "I am thankful to the Haryana Chief Minister for recognising my achievements. He has also asked me to form a women’s police hockey team," she says.

At present, Mamta is working hard to remove the chinks in her game. "Though my attacking moves are good, I am focusing on increasing my speed and physical endurance," she said.

Talking about the impact of Chak De! India on women’s hockey, she says, "No doubt it made waves for a while, but the government is not looking at the ground reality. The game is suffering because our team hardly has no sponsors."

However, she hastens to add that recently a Mumbai-based company, City Limousine, has come forward to sponsor the team. "If things go well, women’s hockey will get a major boost," she hopes.

Mamta is pretty satisfied with her team’s form, but she thinks Indian players lag behind their Dutch and Australian rivals when it comes to physical endurance. "This is a key area where we need to improve if our team has to become one of the best in the world," she says, exuding optimism.