Belgrade: Akash Kumar (54kg) became the fourth Indian boxer to assure a medal on debut at the ongoing AIBA World Men’s Boxing Championships in Belgrade. The 21-year-old had lost his mother a month before, and he had steeled himself to live with the loss until Tuesday, when he became India’s first boxer to clinch himself a medal at the ongoing championships.
With a brilliant win over former Olympic silver medalist Yoel Finol Rivas of Venezuela, he advanced to the semifinals. Akash won 5-0 with a fantastic performance that had a perfect blend of forceful punches and flair. After four other Indians were eliminated in the quarterfinals, he was the only one left in the tournament.
“I dedicate this medal to my late mother and father and my coaches. I competed in such a big tournament for the first time in my life and I feel so proud to have done well,” Akash said. “His performance has earned him a lot of respect from his opponents. For a debutant, he showed tremendous confidence against boxers who were far more experienced,” added India’s High-Performance Director Santiago Nieva while talking to PTI.
Akash secures India's 1st medal! 🇮🇳👊
Debutant Akash Kumar defeated former Olympic silver-medallist Yoel Finol Rivas of Venezuela to advance to the 54kg semifinal at the World Boxing Championships.#Boxing 🥊 pic.twitter.com/nuq7WXOl8Q
— The Bridge (@the_bridge_in) November 2, 2021
Kumar has already made history by becoming the 7th Indian to earn a medal at the World Championships, regardless of how he performs in the semifinal. However, while Kumar has gone on to make sporting headlines, his coach Narender Rana was trying his best to hide the news from Akash.
 became the fourth Indian boxer to assure a medal on debut at the ongoing World Men's Boxing Championships.){kind=link}