vijender singh was the first indian boxer to win an olympic medal.
vijender singh was the first indian boxer to win an olympic medal.
first indian boxer to win an olympic medal?
vijender singh
at the 2008 summer olympics, he defeated badou jack of gambia 13–2 in the round of 32. in the round of 16, he defeated angkhan chomphuphuang of thailand 13–3 to reach the middleweight boxing quarterfinals. he beat southpaw carlos góngora of ecuador 9–4 in the quarterfinals on 20 august 2008 which guaranteed him a medal, the first ever olympic medal for an indian boxer. he lost 5–8 to cuba's emilio correa in the semi-finals on 22 august 2008 and shared a bronze medal. vijender, and indian wrestler sushil kumar—who won a bronze at the men's wrestling competitions—were welcomed grandly to india after their victory.
vijender singh
the 24-year-old manipuri lad also ended a 15-year wait for india by winning gold at the asian boxing championships, at zhuhai, china, in june 2009. he was also the lone indian boxer to win a gold medal at that event. the last gold medal for india in the asian championship came in the 1994 edition in tehran where rajkumar sangwan finished on top in the super heavyweight category. he also became the first indian boxer to win the gold medal in the 51 kg flyweight category at the inter-continental president's cup in baku, azerbaijan in december 2009, the first-ever by an indian in an amateur international boxing association (aiba) organised event. he was also the first indian to be declared the 'best boxer' of any senior men's boxing championships at the world level. he is supported by olympic gold quest.
suranjoy singh