KOCHI: While all eyes will expectedly be on MC Mary Kom, Amit Panghal and Vikas Krishan, there is a dark horse among India's Tokyo-bound boxers. Unheralded pugilist Ashish Kumar, who hails from Himachal Pradesh, will be competing in the middleweight category (75 kg) in what will be his first-ever appearance at the Olympics.
The 26-year-old will be competing in the same weight division in which Vijender Singh had won bronze in the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Till this day, Vijender remains the only male boxer to win an Olympic medal and the 35-year-old feels that Ashish should keep his head down and avoid all the distractions around him to have a memorable experience in the ring.
"My advice to him (Ashish) would be to stay away from social media and save up all his energy. When you go to the Olympic village, there will be a lot of changes. You are treated like a king and you'll feel like you can do whatever you want to do in the village. But I'd tell him not to waste his energy and just focus on why you are here and what you are doing here. Just focus on your aim and that's it," said Vijender during a virtual media interaction on Tuesday.
India will see its biggest ever boxing contingent at the Olympics with nine boxers (five male and four female pugilists) set to compete in Tokyo. A lot will be expected from them especially after the 2016 Rio Olympics disappointment where they returned empty-handed.
"At the last Olympics, we didn't do well. This time, the squad which is going to the Olympics is very good and nine boxers have qualified. The likes of Mary Kom and Vikas Krishan have experience and they have a very good chance," he said.
Vijender is confident that these experienced boxers will put on a good show and fetch some medals. "I will say that we will get at least one or two medals for sure because of Mary Kom, Amit, and Vikas. I hope they will come up with medals. These boxers can also share their experiences with others. Also, those boxers who are participating in their first Olympics, I'm sure they will give it their all. And even if they don't win a medal, there will be another Olympics coming up after four years," he said.
Meanwhile, the evergreen Mary Kom is expected to be competing at what could be arguably her last Olympics and Vijender believes she continues to be an inspiration. "She is a strong woman and we just hope she returns with a medal. She is such a strong lady and to be competing at such a level to this day is amazing. We all can learn so much from her," he said.