Shiva Thapa: 5 things to know about the Indian boxer who shined at the Asian Boxing Championships

Shiva Thapa became the most successful Indian pugilist at the Asian Boxing Championships on Tuesday when he advanced to the semi-finals to secure a fifth successive medal. Previously at the tournament, he has won a gold medal in bantamweight in 2013, a silver in 2017 and two bronze medals (bantamweight in 2015 and lightweight in 2019)

Following the semi-final, the 27-year-old, outpunched the defending champion Bakhodur Usmonov of Tajikistan, who was also the top seed, to reach the finals with a 4-0 verdict.

As the Assam-boxer gears up for his final on Monday, let us know more about his journey:

Sporting family

Thapa hails from Guwahati in Assam. The Indian state is not really known for producing boxing champions but the 2015 World Championships bronze medallist is changing that.

However, he is not the first member of his family to take up sport. His father Padam was a karate instructor in Guwahati and brother Gobind was a state-level boxing champion in Assam.

His father was, in fact, the most influential figure in his career. He not only trained Shiva and Gobind but also was a masseur, dietician and mentor to them.

Padam had also set up an 'Olympic training programme' to groom his sons and they never complained about it even though it meant they could sleep only five hours a day.

“They never complained because they loved contact sport and training. I don’t recall them ever slacking. I am not sure if they knew what the Olympic Games were about but they chased my dream,” Padam told the Indian Express.

The programme, chalked out by his father, would see them complete their homework between 3 am and 5:30 am. The Thapa brothers would then begin training at the Ulubari Boxing Club and his father made the best use of the time they gained after the school principal exempted them from morning assembly.

“After lunch and a brief rest, I would take them for their afternoon training session to the boxing club. At 7 pm, they had mathematics tuition. They were allowed to watch television for half an hour but under no circumstances could they stay up after 10 pm,” Padam said.

“I would use lahsun tel (garlic oil) and give them massages. They would laze around under the sun. Garlic oil has calcium and the sun helps the body produce Vitamin D. I am a simple man but I did follow scientifically-proven training methods,” he added.

Hero worship

Boxing was, however, not the first love for Thapa. He was inclined towards karate, athletics and football early on. It was only when he watched American boxing legend Mike Tyson on television that he wanted to take up the sport.

"I took up boxing when I saw Mike Tyson. I was just awestruck by his charisma and the way he made boxing look so stylish," Thapa had told PTI in an interview. "And the decision has worked well for me. Now I just need to keep working hard and the results will follow.".

Early bloomer

It was at the 21st sub-junior national boxing championships held in 2005 at Noida that Thapa made a mark. He was set to fight in the 36kg category but a misinformed official told the boxer that the particular weight class was not included at the event.

It was then that his father asked him to drink two litres of water to make a cut for the 38kg category weigh-in but was also worried that his son might get hurt during the fight. Thapa, however, exceeded his father's expectations and bagged a gold medal in the higher weight category.

“He beat the champion from the Services team," Padam told the Indian Express.

"He was much smaller than the other boxers in the category and I remember that he held his guard nearly over his head. But he fought like a tiger, he was fearless. There was a look of calmness in his eyes though he was in a tough situation. That day I knew this boy would fight for India at the Olympics."

Young and relentless

Thapa was the youngest Indian to qualify for the London 2012 Olympics and clinch a gold medal at the 2013 Asian Championships.

The Assamese boxer beat Wessam Salamana 18-11 of Syria to clinch the gold medal at the Asian Olympic Qualifiers held in Astana, Kazakhstan in 2012 to qualify for the Games in the 56kg category. He, however, lost in the first round of the 2012 London Olympics to Mexico's Oscar Valdez Fierro by a 9-14 verdict.

In 2013, at the age of 19, Thapa defeated local favourite Obada Alkabeh 2-1 to clinch the gold medal at the Asian Championships in Amman, Jordan.

His fine run also continued in 2015 as he became the third Indian boxer after Vijender Singh (2009) and Vikas Krishan (2011) to fetch a World Championships medal. Thapa had settled for a bronze medal after losing the 56kg contest to Uzbekistan's Asian silver-medallist Murodjon Akhmadaliev.

Domestic challenge

Bhiwani-boxer and Tokyo bound Manish Kaushik has been on the rise and tested Shiva Thapa in the 63kg category. Kaushik had defeated the two-time Olympian in 2019 to book a berth for the AIBA men’s World Championships held in Ekaterinburg, Russia.

Incidentally, Kaushik had also outpunched Thapa in 2018, to reach the India Open lightweight final. The Assam-boxer had also struggled in the national boxing championship in 2017 as he had lost to Kaushik.

Though Thapa did not manage to qualify for Tokyo 2020, he is keeping himself motivated.

"Perhaps it's a sign that I have to keep going, try harder, that's what an athlete is supposed to do. We can't give up. Obviously nothing compares to the Olympics, it is the biggest but you have to give your best in the opportunities you get, I am trying to do that," Thapa told PTI.

"You keep giving your best and eventually the results come. Every moment is a blessing, I live by that," he added.