The Services Sports Control Board and the Army Institute of Sports allowed their pugilists to compete on the professional circuit recently and former Asian Games Silver medallist Manpreet Singh has now taken advantage of this decision to become one of four boxers to go pro.
According to the president of Indian Boxing Council, Brig PK Muralidharan Raja, the Indian Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar had a hand in this monumental step, here’s what he said, (courtesy: indialivetoday.com)
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"The SSCB and the Army Sports Control Board have allowed their boxers to compete on the professional circuit. This move came about because of Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar's intervention. He has sanctioned this decision,"
AIBA decided to allow boxers to compete in national events after their sanction in the Rio Olympics, earlier this year.
According to a report from indialivetoday.com, since SSCB’s approval, four boxers have already taken the opportunity, and among them is Singh, who will look to compete in the Cruiserweight division on the pro-circuit.
Other players that have have been permitted to compete on the circuit are Som Bahadur Pun, Sanjay Kolte and Santosh Harijan, competing in super middleweight, lightweight and super featherweight categories respectively.
While AIBA has already permitted four boxers, they are looking to encourage even more to go through the process. "We also requested Suranjoy Singh (to take the plunge) but he is right now the chief coach of Navy, and that has not quite worked out," Brig Raja said.
“Given that AIBA has now broken all barriers for professional boxers, it would be good to have a larger pool of boxers to choose from. The senior guys will have the option of turning pro so that the youngsters get enough chances of proving their mettle. And during trials both pros and amateurs can be pitted against each other from where the best can go on to represent India,’” he added.
With professional boxers now getting a larger opportunity, this act can be a step ahead in the development and growth of boxing in India.
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