India’s latest Asian champion Sanjeet
He took to boxing to keep away from “padhai likhai” and India’s latest Asian champion Sanjeet’s religion in his alternative has paid off fairly effectively as he revels within the glory of beating an Olympic medallist for the “greatest second” of his decade-long profession.
The 26-year-old from Haryana’s Rohtak took down Kazakhstan’s Vassiliy Levit, who’s the 2016 Olympic silver-medallist and a two-time world bronze-winner, within the closing of the just-concluded event in Dubai on Monday.
It was a revenge of kinds for Sanjeet (91 kg) as he had been knocked out by Levit in 2018 through the President’s Cup in Kazakhstan.
“It’s the greatest second of my profession though I’m additionally a world championship quarterfinalist. To beat an Olympic medallist is a big deal,” Sanjeet informed PTI earlier than boarding his flight again house.
The enormity of his win could be gauged from the truth that Levit was chasing a fourth gold medal on the continental showpiece and has a complete of 5 medals at this occasion.
The Kazakh has additionally certified for the Olympic Video games in Tokyo.
Nevertheless, earlier than the momentous night in Dubai, Sanjeet’s main accomplishments included profitable a nationwide championship gold medal in 2018, an India Open gold in the identical yr and in addition a victory within the now discontinued pro-style World Collection of Boxing.
He has an unmissable pleasure for all his achievements and for the way far he has come since venturing into the ring for the primary time a decade again, impressed by his brother who can also be his formative coach.
“I took to boxing after seeing my brother, he’s my coach as effectively, it was in 2010. Truly, for me it was an escape from padhai likhai (research). I used to be not and my mother and father actually wished me to deal with training,” he recalled.
“So there was this early resistance from them however I used to be clear about what I wished to do. As soon as I began profitable medals on the state degree, they got here round too. They’re happy with me,” he mentioned.
The Military man earned effusive reward from nationwide coach C A Kuttappa, who has seen his development from shut vary.
“He was all about energy punches until a number of years again and has come fairly a distance since that crushing loss to Levit in 2018. Now we have labored on his pace within the ring and in addition his physique punches,” Kuttappa mentioned.
In 2019, Sanjeet had made a mark on the world championships in Russia by reaching the quarterfinals earlier than finally shedding on a cut up choice.
For all of the spunk he displayed within the Asian championships, Sanjeet isn’t within the reckoning for the Olympics in July-August.
He couldn’t make the workforce for the Asian Olympic qualifiers final yr as he was on the sidelines due to a shoulder damage which wanted surgical procedure.
“That was simply dangerous luck. He would have performed effectively had he gone. Even when he had not certified, he would have had the rankings to make it by now,” Kuttappa mentioned.
However there are excessive hopes from him going ahead.
“Now we have to be strict with him in coaching as a result of he can slack off however he delivers when pushed. For now, he wants to enhance on one rely. Suppose on his personal within the ring,” Kuttappa mentioned.
“He has this behavior of trying in direction of the workforce nook when the going will get robust, he must be a proactive thinker whereas combating. We are going to get there, he’s studying,” he added.