Manish Kaushik: The CWG silver medal-winning armyman who packs a punch

DISCIPLINE

Boxing (63kg, lightweight category)

PAST MILESTONES

Manish, who is employed with Indian Army as a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO), was inspired to don the boxing gloves by growing up watching his childhood heroes Vijender Singh, Jitender Singh and Dinesh Kumar. In his first international appearance, he won the gold medal at the 2015 Doha International Boxing Tournament and he followed it up with a silver at the 2017 Kazakhstan International Boxing Tournament and a gold at the 2017 National Boxing Games.

He went on to represent India in the 2018 Commonwealth Games, winning the silver medal, before claiming the bronze medal at the 2019 AIBA World Boxing Championships. His most recent achievement remains the gold medal at the 35th Boxam International Tournament in Castellon, Spain in March this year where he defeated Denmark’s Nikolai Terteryan in a split decision.

FAMILY BACKGROUND

Manish hails from the village of Devsar in the Bhiwani district of Haryana — the famed cradle of domestic boxing. His father is a farmer.

TRIVIA

Manish will be making his first Olympic appearance in Tokyo after overcoming hurdles such as a bout of COVID-19 this year and injuring his bicep last year.