CHANDIGARH: Teenage boxer Sandeep Kaur made sure the tricolour was flying high in Poland when she won gold in the 52kg weight category at the 13th International Silesian Boxing Championships for women. She won the yellow metal in the junior section. Sandeep thumped her opponent, Poland’s Karolina Ampuska, by a 5-0 margin in the summit clash.
Success didn’t come easy for the 16-year-old, a native of Hassanpur village in Patiala. Sandeep’s humble background meant she always had to fight it out – be it a financial crunch in her family or fellow villagers telling her parents to force her to give up the sport – the struggle was immense.
Sandeep’s father, Sardar Jasvir Singh drives an auto in the streets of Patiala to make ends meet. His earning was enough to make sure the family didn’t sleep hungry. He also made sure Sandeep didn’t have to give up her boxing.
Sandeep’s uncle, Simranjit Singh, who used to box at a village academy, inspired her to take up the sport. “I used to go with my uncle to a boxing academy near our village when I was a child. At the academy, I saw several youngsters box, and gradually my interest in the sport grew. I was 8 when I first picked up the boxing gloves and started training,” Sandeep told TOI. She trained under coach Sunil Kumar at the academy. Sandeep’s family had to face a lot of resistance over her taking up boxing by fellow villagers.
Success didn’t come easy for the 16-year-old, a native of Hassanpur village in Patiala. Sandeep’s humble background meant she always had to fight it out – be it a financial crunch in her family or fellow villagers telling her parents to force her to give up the sport – the struggle was immense.
Sandeep’s father, Sardar Jasvir Singh drives an auto in the streets of Patiala to make ends meet. His earning was enough to make sure the family didn’t sleep hungry. He also made sure Sandeep didn’t have to give up her boxing.
Sandeep’s uncle, Simranjit Singh, who used to box at a village academy, inspired her to take up the sport. “I used to go with my uncle to a boxing academy near our village when I was a child. At the academy, I saw several youngsters box, and gradually my interest in the sport grew. I was 8 when I first picked up the boxing gloves and started training,” Sandeep told TOI. She trained under coach Sunil Kumar at the academy. Sandeep’s family had to face a lot of resistance over her taking up boxing by fellow villagers.
Source : timesofindia[dot]indiatimes[dot]com
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