OLYMPIC DREAMS

New Delhi: India will be sending a total of six boxers to the Paris Olympics. After returning empty-handed from the first World boxing qualifiers in Italy in March, Amit Panghal (men’s 51kg), Jaismine Lamboria (women’s 57kg) and Nishant Dev (men’s 71kg) saved the country’s blushes after securing three more quota places at the second and final qualification event in Thailand.TOI spoke to them about the ups and downs they faced in their qualifying journey and plans for the Paris Games...Jaismine Lamboria (women’s 57kg)Jaismine Lamboria had lost all hopes of representing India at the Paris Olympics after failing to book her berth from two qualification events – Hangzhou Asian Games and first world boxing qualifier held in Italy from March 3 to 11.She was back to her training base in Haryana’s Bhiwani district – from where she originally belongs – pondering over what went wrong and the road ahead as the 22-year-old looked to channelise her energy for the women’s World Championships and other international meets later this year.Then, out of nowhere, came a surprise call from the Boxing Federation of India (BFI) and the boxer was asked to get competition-ready for the second world qualification event in Thailand. She was given only one week to prepare and, that too, not in her original weight category of 60kg.Jaismine was told that she will have to compete in the women’s 57kg division to reclaim the Paris Olympics quota in the same weight class which India was forced to surrender after Parveen Hooda’s 22-month suspension by the International Testing Agency (ITA) for whereabouts failure.Jaismine made good the opportunity to fulfill her dream of participating in the Olympics.Talking about her qualification journey, Jaismine said, “It was an advantage (competing in 57kg) as my competitors weren’t as tall as me. I used my height and long reach to beat them. I have an attacking game but for Paris, I am working on counterattacking and to connect my open punches.”Amit Panghal (men’s 51kg)Paris Olympics qualification has infused new life into Amit Panghal’s career. Once the world’s No. 1 boxer in 51kg category, he fell out of favour with the administrators and national coaches after a stunning first-round loss at the Tokyo Olympics. He was often misunderstood for his forthrightness and putting out his views in public. At the same time, the rise of another boxer Deepak Bhoria in his flyweight category saw him being completely sidelined by the coaches and national selectors.Amit did win a Commonwealth Games gold in Birmingham in 2022 and, more recently, achieved another top of the podium finish at the Strandja Memorial meet in February. In between, the opportunities were far and few. Besides, he missed two men’s World Championships and Hangzhou Asian Games.Bhoria became a No. 1 choice to secure the Paris Games quota and was sent to the Asiad and first world boxing qualification event in Italy ahead of Panghal. But when Bhoria blew away all his qualification chances, the BFI, in its desperate attempt to win more quota places, turned to and tested Panghal – a 2019 World Championships silver medallist – to book a Paris berth. Panghal, known for his never-say-die-attitude, returned the favour in the only qualification chance he got since the Tokyo Games and came out triumphant at the second qualifying meet in Thailand.Nishant Dev (men’s 71kg)In January 2022, Nishant Dev feared the end of his promising boxing career. He was told by doctors that his right shoulder had developed a fungal infection and that it was spreading to other parts of his body as well.It was because of the rod that was put in to treat his dislocated shoulder back in 2010 after he fell down the stairs at his home. The rod was removed three months later and Nishant, who was introduced to the sport in 2012 by his uncles, continued pursuing boxing.Ten years later, when he was making the heads turn in boxing circles with his fearless approach and aggression, came the news that his shoulder had developed severe infection and needed immediate treatment.By that time, Nishant had become the senior national champion and a World Championships bronze medallist. He immediately went for surgery in March 2022 and rehabilitation in his spirited to again return to the boxing ring. He kept working on his endurance and conditioning and never allowed insecurities to disrupt his comeback trail. Nishant came back stronger after retaining his senior Nationals title in Hisar a year later and, since then, has become a dominant force in the71kg division.He recently saved the country’s blushes after getting the to secure a quota place for the Paris Olympics following his semifinal dash at the second world boxing qualifiers in Thailand.“I have power, speed and timing. But the main thing is skills. If you have that you can win against any kind of boxer. Hard work and smart.”“Like this time (during Olympic qualifiers), I was going for body shots, body punches... body punches are painful and can make the opponent breathless. There were shortcomings that I had, like low stamina in the third round, my body balance, and also the fact that my body function had become weak. I didn’t have the body language that one should have in round three. I worked on all of this,” he added.