Patiala: Four years ago, Vijender Singh Beniwal did what no other Indian boxer had done before. A bronze medal at the Beijing Olympics – the very first by an Indian boxer – brought India to the boxing map of the world. And that was the beginning! There was more to come as the pugilist from Kaluwash village in Bhiwani District brought another glory by becoming the first Indian to win a bronze at the 2009 AIBA World Boxing Championship in Milan. Though there was disappointment for Vijender at the Commonwealth Games, he came with a bang to win the yellow metal at Asian Games and now the champion is ready to lead the Indian attack in London Olympics.
Recalling his triumph in Beijing Vijender said that 2006 was a special year and that he was growing as a young boxer. “I was full of aggression and energy, never caring to see who the opponent was, just getting into the ring and boxing. But yes those medal and achievements were instrumental in my development as a boxer. I was more confident and a mature athlete after those tournamenst. The Asian Games in particular, the loss against 2004 Athens Games gold medallist, Kazakhstan's Bakhtiyar Artayev (24:29) was a big inspiration for me. It was a great bout, although I lost, but it was with a small margin. I was really appreciated for the kind of fight that I put up against a top class boxer. It was a big morale boost and I was happy with my performance,” said Vijender, adding that winning the bronze in Beijing Olympics was the turning point in his career.
“It was a big change, for me, the sport and the people’s outlook towards the sport. It was the first medal in boxing and we really needed something of that sort for the sport. Even my fellow boxers approach changed, everyone started to believe and I think belief makes all the difference. The journey is still going on and with God’s grace will have a few more medals to show for,” said Vijender, adding that he was happy with his preparations for the London Games so far.
“We are training hard for the London Games focusing on various aspects of the game, which include endurance and speed training; it involves a lot of running and sprinting among other things. Plus we do weight training, shadow boxing and sparring as well. We are heading for a preparatory training camp in Ireland and later have plans to train in London before the Olympics,” added the champion.
Confident of a good performance in the mega event, Vijender said, “I will try to do something different again. I can tell this much that I will give my very best and the rest is up to God. It obviously feels good to represent the country in three Olympics but I just don’t want to be tagged as the one who played three Olympics, but as the one who got medals in two.”
By Indian Sports News Network
