New Delhi, July 1: Vikas Krishan has learned from the bitterest experience that he can leave nothing to chance in the Olympic ring and it is a lesson the Indian boxer will carry with him to the Rio Games.
Four years ago, the then 20-year-old welterweight thought he had clinched a place in the quarterfinals of the London Olympics after beating American Errol Spence 13-11. His joy turned quickly to outrage when AIBA, after reviewing video footage, overturned the result and awarded the American four additional points for fouls committed by Krishan.
The boxer has since moved up to the 75kg category, but the feeling of being wronged in London has never left him. “London taught me a big lesson,” the softly-spoken Krishan, sporting a mosaic of bruises on the top half of his face and a couple of stitches over his right eye,” said Friday.
“It taught me I can’t leave anything to chance. It taught me results of close contests can go either way even after you’ve been declared the winner. Since then, I have always tried to make my bouts one-sided and win it really big. That will be my effort in Rio as well,” added Krishan.
Shattered by the London setback, Krishan largely shunned the ring for the next 18 months, undertaking training to become a policeman in Haryana instead.
“I was a lot younger and more vulnerable then. I saw no point in continuing boxing. I would wake up at nine, sleep late and be casual about my training,” he recalled.
“The time away from ring allowed me to think about boxing. Now I’m better prepared to deal with any such heartbreak,” asserted the pugilist.
He is, though, determined to ensure he does not have to deal with anything similar in Rio. “I have an unfinished business in the Olympics,” Krishan informed. “My dreams were shattered in London. I want to fulfil them in Rio.”
