A wave of boxing activity has engulfed Tamil Nadu. “This year alone, we have got to host three national-level events," says A.K. Karunakaran, General Secretary, Tamil Nadu Boxing Association. “In May, we had the Girls' Junior Nationals in Erode, and from June 29 to July 11, Chennai will host the Boys' Junior Nationals. We will also conduct the Federation Cup for seniors later this year.”
At Erode, Tamil Nadu won three golds across the junior and sub-junior categories, with R. Sindhu, gold medallist in the 36kg sub-junior category, adjudged the most promising boxer of the meet. Overall, Tamil Nadu was placed eighth in the junior category and sixth in the sub-juniors — a decent return for a state that isn't one of India's traditional boxing powers.
“In the seniors, we are in a situation where we don't get into the top eight in the nationals,” says Karunakaran. “This could change if we develop the talent we now have at the junior level. The girls who won medals in Erode, as well as some of our junior boys such as Raj Bharath, who is a two-time national junior champion, are all promising,” he adds.
The state's current crop of young boxers is a result of boxing's presence in the school games syllabus, says Karunakaran. “For about five-six years, boxing wasn't one of the school games. Then, in 2005-06, SGFI (School Games Federation of India) re-introduced it. After that, a lot of schools started approaching us to help them train their kids,” he says.
More awareness
“The interest is high,” he says, continuing, “awareness has increased because of India doing well at the Olympics and Commonwealth championships. Plus, this being an individual event is an advantage. Small schools may not have a good football team, but they can approach us to help them train even one talented boxer.”
The biggest impact has been in the districts, according to Karunakaran. “Earlier, Chennai was the base, and we had boxers from probably three or four other districts. Now, boxing has spread to 23 districts, with an average of 40-50 boxers in each district, across all age groups,” he says. “In Chennai, we have more than 500 boxers now.”
This injection of talent needs to be complemented by an injection of resources for Tamil Nadu's boxers to really make an impact.
“In states such as Manipur, Haryana and Andhra Pradesh, SAI (Sports Authority of India) has schemes for boxers under which they will get hostel facilities and training. We don't have that in Tamil Nadu,” says Karunakaran. “So we may conduct month-long camps before major meets, but that isn't enough for long-term development.”
Finding room for the city's burgeoning boxing fraternity is another concern. “Most academies don't have their own facilities. Only Singaram Pillay Boxing Academy has a place of its own,” Karunakaran says. “The rest train here, at the SDAT School of Boxing (in Nehru Stadium). Since the boxers have to go to school or work, they train between five and eight in the morning and from four to eight in the evening. In those seven hours, we have to fit more than 500 boxers.”
Despite these pressures, the TNBA is accelerating efforts to attract greater participation in the sport. “About three-four years ago, we introduced cub boxing, for children in the 8-10 age group,” he says. “The response has been terrific. We train about 70 to 80 cub boxers now. Earlier, parents were scared that their children would get hurt. Now, they are a lot more aware, after watching our exhibitions in schools.”
