Firstpost.com takes a quick look at the performances of Satish Kumar, the first Indian boxer in the +91kg super heavyweight category to qualify for the Games, over the past two years, and charts his journey towards securing an Olympic berth.
File image of Satish Kumar. Image courtesy: JSW Sports
Editor’s Note: For five years now, Indian athletes have been dreaming to make up for the disappointment of a two-medal haul in Rio. The span has been extraordinary, with COVID-19 having thrown their preparations – and the Olympics itself – off gear. However, in true Olympic spirit, the country’s finest sportspersons have battled form and uncertainty to put their best foot forward in what promises to be a Games like none other. In our latest series, we track the last two years’ performances of our athletes to give you a ready guide to their form leading into the biggest sporting spectacle of the world.
Satish, a Commonwealth and Asian Games medallist, became the first Indian boxer in the +91kg super heavyweight category to qualify for the Olympics. He booked his ticket to Tokyo after advancing to the semi-final of the Asian/Oceanian Olympic Qualifiers in March 2020, with a 5-0 win over Mongolia’s Daivii Otgonbayar. He bowed out of the marquee event after losing to top-seed and Uzbekistan’s Bakhodir Jalolov via unanimous decision.
In the World Boxing Championships 2019, Satish went down 0-5 to Richard Torrez of the USA in his opening-round bout. Later in the year, Satish won his bout for the Tokyo Qualifiers and made it to the team.
Unconventional lockdown training
During lockdown, Satish was spending his time in his hometown of Bulandshahr training by himself. Short of equipment and with his town being declared a red zone, the boxer used things like tyres and ropes to keep up his fitness.
The 6ft 2inch boxer participated in the Cologne Boxing World Cup in December 2020 and bagged the silver medal. He made the final after beating France’s Djamili Dini Moindze 4-1, but had to withdraw against Germany’s Nelvie Tiafack owing to an injury.
The 32-year-old also qualified for the final at the Boxam International Tournament but had to withdraw from the gold medal bout due to sickness. He tested positive for COVID-19
before the Asian Championships in May 2021 and had to miss the tournament.
Click here to check out form guides for the rest of the Indian contingent at the Tokyo Olympics 2020.
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