Beating all odds, Chandigarh lad wins gold at Asian boxing meet
After making a cautious start, 15-year-old boxer’s timely and precise punches gave him edge over his Mongolian opponent in a close-fought match that he managed to win 3-2
Working in the kitchen of a Mohali restaurant on a busy Sunday evening, cook Jai Prakash kept waiting for a call from his 15-year-old son.
Miles away, his son Rohit Chamoli was vying for a gold at the ASBC Asian Youth and Junior Boxing Championships in Dubai. Competing in the 48-kg weight category, the young boxer was pitted against Otgonbayar Tuvshinzaya of Mangolia in the final bout.
When the 15-year-old finally called to inform his father that he had won the gold medal for India, Jai Prakash had tears in his eyes. He immediately called up Rohit’s coach Joginder Kumar to congratulate and thank him for his persistent training and support.
“Coach ko bhadhai ho. Unki wajah se aaj Rohit gold le paya hai itne bade level pe (Kudos to the coach! It’s because of him that Rohit could win a gold in an international tournament),” said Jai Prakash. “We never had money to buy shoes or gloves for him. Coach Sir helped us, and see how Rohit has done us proud now.”
Jai Prakash wanted his son to focus on education and not on the sport, but it was on the coach’s insistence that Rohit stuck to boxing. Rohit’s fascination grew for the sport when he saw his uncle’s daughter Meenakshi win a bronze in the Junior National Tournament and also fetch a job with the Indo-Tibetan Border Police later on.
“Rohit has hunger in him. He won gold for Chandigarh in the Junior Nationals at Sonepat last month, and carried forward his fine form. I have been training him for four years and never saw him break down due to poverty,” said Joginder, who is a former national-level boxer and an assistant sub-inspector with Punjab Police. He has been coaching underprivileged children, including Rohit’s cousin Meenakshi, at Bouganvillea Garden in Sector 3, Chandigarh, for 12 years.
‘Want to win Olympic gold for my father’
In Dubai, after making a cautious start, Chamoli’s timely and precise punches gave him edge over his Mongolian opponent in a close-fought match that he managed to win 3-2. While handing India the first gold of the competition, he also won USD 4,000 (around ₹2.95 lakh) prize money.
“The pandemic has affected my income. Last year, I lost my job as a cook at the place where I had worked for five years. It was tough to sustain with three kids pursuing education. I did odd jobs to earn bread and found another job in a restaurant in Mohali a few months ago. Even during this struggling phase, when at times we didn’t even have anything to eat, we encouraged Rohit to follow the sport,” said Jai Prakash, who lives in Mohali’s Nayagaon area with his family.
Rohit studies in Class 11 at Government Model Senior Secondary School, Sector 16, and thus represents Chandigarh at the national level.
Speaking over the phone after his win, Rohit said: “I am so thrilled to take gold. I just want to go home and show the medal to my family and coach. They have done a lot for me. I have trained in torn shoes and used old gloves in the park to learn boxing. My confidence grew when I took part in inter-school tournaments and won medals. I want to upgrade my training and one day win an Olympic medal for my father, who has sacrificed so much.”
“Now that Rohit has shined at an international tournament, the Boxing Federation of India will call him for camps and provide modern training,” said coach Joginder Kumar. “He should be groomed for more international tournaments. Meanwhile, I will keep training other underprivileged children.”