Boxer Vikas Krishan ‘pro training’ himself for Tokyo Olympics

From now on until the Tokyo Olympics in 2021, Vikas Krishan must present the abilities to traverse two very totally different territories {of professional} and novice boxing. The delay within the Games prompted Krishan to maneuver again to skilled boxing and honour his dedication with promoters Top Rank.

The 28-year-old has began his coaching in isolation on the Inspire Institute of Sport in Vijayanagar. Krishan took the skilled route in 2018, however was again for the Tokyo Olympics qualifier this yr and made the minimize. The want to win a medal in what will probably be his third Olympics introduced him again to the novice fold.

However, with the Olympics postponed and no tournaments scheduled, Krishan feels one of the simplest ways to get some competitors is to return to the skilled enviornment. The solely problem dealing with Krishan is the scarcity of time in shifting gear to novice boxing earlier than the Olympics.

The calls for of the 2 streams of boxing are very totally different—pro-boxing is akin to a marathon, whereas the novice fashion is sort of like a dash. Krishan’s coach at IIS, Ronald Simms of the US, nevertheless, believes it received’t be troublesome.

“It will depend on his mentality. Ninety-nine per cent of the boxers I have seen turning champions in the professional arena are those who box the exact same way in amateur. There is no change,” says Simms.

“He has just started training and will gradually go into more strenuous physical and technical training. We have decided how we need to approach this period, where we need to focus and improve. We are going to assess his professional bouts closely and address it from the point of amateur bouts and make the corrections. He is at a low level in professional boxing at the moment. He is not fighting the elite level of professional boxers.”

Simms feels Krishan is in good area so far as the Olympics is worried.

“Most Olympics medallists in boxing are not first-timers. Most of them who win gold medals also end up turning professional. He has already turned professional and we will see that he is right on track to compete with the best of amateur boxers and come out on top.”

Krishan had performed two skilled bouts final yr and was comfy switching again to novice boxing.

Transition not an issue: Nieva

“It will be good to have some bouts in professional boxing and then come back to amateur. He will benefit. The transition for him will not be a problem; he showed that in the qualification. He will not forget 15-20 years of Olympic boxing,” says high-performance director Santiago Nieva.

“He has good skills, power and tremendous experience and that makes him a strong candidate for an Olympic medal in Tokyo.”

When Krishan returned to novice ranks final yr, he adjusted rapidly and even topped the home trials. His swap from middleweight (75kg) to welter (69kg) additionally labored in his favour. At the Olympic qualifier in Jordan in March, Krishan upset second seed Ablaikhan Zhussupov of Kazakhstan, a two-time world bronze medallist, within the semi-finals to ebook a Tokyo Olympics berth.

“In 69kg, he is a much stronger candidate because that is his natural weight. It took him around one or two months to make the adjustments on return. He was a bit slow when he came back. He quickly adjusted to the rhythm and speed and came back to his level,” says Nieva.

Fighting a number of rounds on the professional stage made Krishan harder, elevated energy in his punches and tightened his defence. It gave him the boldness to compete towards any opponent.

“The aim is to win a gold medal at the Olympics and I am prepared to take any route for that,” says Krishan. “We always think before fighting boxers from the USA, Kazakhstan, Russia and Cuba. Professional boxing has prepared me to the level that I can fight any opponent without any fear or doubts in my mind. I have fought in Madison Square Garden in front of a full house and such experiences have made me tough. It has taught me to deal with pressure.”

The process for Krishan, for now, is to shed some weight. He at present weighs 79kg. “I have to lose around 4-5 kgs first. I am running and doing basic fitness. Once my body is ready, I will do weight training and technical training. The lockdown period was tough… after a month I was frustrated. There was a goal in front of me and I was not able to train and prepare for the Olympics,” stated Krishan.