Sikkim boxers emerge zonal champs, punch up 8 medals

GANGTOK, 29 April: The Sikkim Amateur Boxing Association [SABA] squad has brought home 8 medals and the Team Championship trophy for Sikkim from the 4th edition of Senior Men’s East Zonal Boxing Championship held at Burnpur, Asansol in West Bengal. One more laurel to the State was added by Madan Rai who won the Best Boxer title in the Championship.
The gold medals were won by Madan Rai, Pappu Tamang and Gurpreet Singh in their respective weight categories, while the silver medalists were Prem Gurung and Naveen Cintury and the bronze medalists were Biswajit Bhowal, Sushil Tamang and Kunga Namgyal Bhutia.
Likewise, the other two pugilists in the team, Tenzing Sherpa and Pawan Singh, performed well in the championship but were not able to bag medals. The team was accompanied by Ganesh Basnet as team coach and Ongyal Sherpa as team manager.
The medalists and team members were felicitated by the SABA in a function today for their performance in the championship. On the occasion, the association also observed one minute silence on the sad demise of one of its members, Blacky Tsong recently.
Speaking on the occasion, the Best Boxer titleholder, the young promising pugilist, Madan mentioned that the gold medal and best boxer title have encouraged him to fight better in future competitions. However, he also mentioned that pugilists in the capital have been practicing without a boxing ring since the past one year, which has had a negative impact on their performances and stamina. If they are provided with the boxing ring then they could do much better in the future at the international level, said Madan.
SABA president, Praveen Gurung mentioned that the game of boxing is purely based on an individual’s hardwork and efforts to excel and the association is just a facilitator which provides a platform to pugilists in the State. The State has been producing many international and national pugilists and bringing medals constantly for the State for many years, he expressed.
Mr Gurung informed that this year the association has decided to conduct the State Championship at Gyalshing, West Sikkim in the month of June and is also preparing the state teams for the forthcoming national championships. He also mentioned that due to renovation work at White Hall where the boxing hall was demolished, the pugilists are practicing without the boxing ring.
The association has set up a temporary ring at Pangthang which is too far for everyone to go for practice daily, he further mentioned. Mr Gurung informed that the SABA will again approach the Sports and Youth Affairs Department to set up a boxing ring at Gangtok at the earliest.
On the demise of one of its active members, Blacky Tsong, he expressed that it is a great loss for the State’s pugilist fraternity and the society, as he always worked to support and encourage young pugilists.
Late Tsong was also the founder of the Boxing Association of Mangshila in North Sikkim.