Naman Tanwar hands India her first boxing medal – bags 91kg bronze.

04:43 Lakshya Sports 0 Comments

Rajyawardhan Rathore: Cabinet Minister incharge for ministry of youth affairs & sports in India

The tiny village of Haluwas – where the Tanwars lived – is about 10 kilometers away from Bhiwani, and it was during their daily commute in the evenings that Sunder Singh Tanwar would discuss boxing with his teenage son. Sunder had originally sent off his young – but alarmingly obese son to a boxing academy in Bhiwani to learn the sport in a bid to lose some weight. But it was only a few months that young Naman had started to take the sport seriously.

Commonwealth Games 2018 Success

• A few years from those journeys between Haluwas and Bhiwani, Naman has become the talk of town, having secured a bronze medal at the Gold Coast Commonwealth Games. 
• Naman, being the youngest member of the Indian boxing squad in Australia, started his campaign in the men’s heavy weight(91 kg) division with a convincing victory over Tanzania’s Haruna Mhando. 
• Tanwar did not face any real threat from his opponent as he cruised to a unanimous 5-0 victory at the Oxenford Studios arena. 
• However, Tanwar saw his run at the Gold Coast come to an end against Australia’s Jason Whateley with a 4-0 defeat. 
• But what stood out was his swagger in the ring. The World Youth Championship bronze medalist employed an unorthodox style, keeping his guard down and using his reflexes to avoid his opponent’s punches while hitting on the counter. His thundering upper-cuts left even a seasoned boxer like Whateley reeling momentarily. 
• The Gold Coast Games are Tanwar’s first major senior event and winning a medal by reaching the semi-finals is testament to the teenager’s prospects as his career progresses. 

Before he left for the Commonwealth Games, his father asked him what medal he believed he would come back with. With typical cheek, Naman replied, “There’s only one medal. I only consider gold as a medal.”
He’ll return from Gold Coast with a bronze, a color he may not recognize as a medal. But the level of performance he provided in the ring was certainly pure gold!

Naman is currently being supported by Lakshya sports, which is a non-profit organization working towards recognizing and nurturing the upcoming sports talent in India. He is sponsored by Tariero Artisan Roastery.