Amit Panghal is an Indian amateur boxer from Haryana. In 2019, he became the first Indian man to win a silver medal in World Championships. [1]Hindustan Times
Wiki/Biography
Amit Panghal was born on Monday, 16 October 1995 (age 26 years; as of 2021) in Mayna, Rohtak, Haryana. His zodiac sign is Libra. While Amit was in his teens, his elder brother, Ajay, who himself was an amateur boxer, motivated Amit to take up boxing as his career. Ajay too wanted to bring laurels to India just like Amit, but his family’s financial condition was not good and his father could afford training of only one brother, so Ajay decided to step back and let Amit pursue boxing as his career. In 2007, Amit enrolled himself at Sir Chhoturam Boxing Academy in Rohtak and got trained under Anil Dhankar. [2]Wikipedia
Physical Appearance
[3]Olympics.com Height: 5′ 2″
Weight (approx.): 50 Kg
Body Measurements (approx.): Chest 38″, Waist 30″, Biceps 14″
Hair Colour: Dark Brown
Eye Colour: Black
Family
Amit’s father, Vijender Singh Panghal, is a farmer in Mayna, Rohtak. Not much is known about his mother. He has an elder brother, Ajay Panghal, who works in the Indian Army.
Ethnicity
Amit Panghal belongs to a Haryanvi family. [4]Instagram- Amit Panghal
Career
Boxing
Amit started his professional boxing career in 2017 with the National Boxing Championships. He bagged a gold medal in the game. However, he rose to fame a few months later after he won a bronze in the Asian Boxing Championships (light flyweight category) in Tashkent in 2017.
The bronze medal in the championship qualified him for the 2017 AIBA World Boxing Championships, where he was beaten in the quarterfinals by Hasanboy Dusmatov (Uzbekistan). He came back strong after the defeat and won a silver medal in the 2018 Commonwealth Games. In the same year, Panghal participated in the Asian Games and went on to win a gold medal after defeating Rio Olympic medalist Dusmatov (the same opponent who defeated him in the World Championships a year before).
In February 2018, he won the gold medal at the Strandzha Cup in Sofia.
Before the start of 2019, he had to change his weight category from 49 to 52 Kg as the former category was discontinued from the Olympics. Despite a change in the category, Amit went on to win the gold in the Asian Boxing Championships in Bangkok. On 21 September 2019, Panghal became the first Indian boxer to win a silver medal in the World Boxing Championships.
In 2020, he qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics after defeating Carlo Paalam from the Philippines in the 52 kg quarterfinal. In December 2020, Amit won a gold medal in the Boxing World Cup in Germany.
Indian Army
Amit is serving the Indian Army as a Junior Commissioned Officer (JCO) since 2018. As of 2021, he is in the 22nd Battalion of The Mahar Regiment.
Medals
- Bronze in Asian Amateur Boxing Championship in Tashkent 2017 (Light Flyweight)
- Silver in Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast in 2018 (Light Flyweight)
- Gold in Asian Games in Jakarta Palembang in 2018 (Light Flyweight)
- Gold in Asian Boxing Championship in Bangkok in 2019 (Flyweight)
- Silver in AIBA World Boxing Championship in Yekaterinburg in 2019 (Flyweight)
- Silver in Asian Boxing Championship in Dubai in 2021 (Flyweight)
Awards
- ‘Best Boxer Award’ at 37th Junior Men Haryana State Boxing Championship (2011)
- ‘Best Boxer Award’ at 38th Junior Men Haryana State Boxing Championship (2012)
- Haryana Gaurav Award (2019)
Favourite Things
- Food: Kadhi-Chawal
- Cricketer: Mahendra Singh Dhoni
- Boxer: Vijender Singh
Facts/Trivia
- Amit loves riding horses and travelling in his leisure time.
- He has been featured on the cover of Grazia magazine.
- In 2018, Amit was invited to inaugurate the 2nd Junior Boxing Championship at Chandigarh University (CU).
- He considers his niece Mehak his lucky charm.
- Panghal is an ardent follower of Lord Hanuman.
- Amit owns a Toyota Fortuner.
- Amit believes that technology has helped sportsmen and athletes to ease their games. In an interview, while discussing how he and his team studied Bibonssinov through video footage, Amit said,
Technology has evolved so much. Earlier we had no clue on how our opponents and their strengths and weaknesses. But video clippings have helped not only us but athletes from different sports to get things right before matches. It is a great thing.”
- He admires PM Narendra Modi. While talking about him in an interview, Amit said,
Wo desh ke liye itna karte hai, hum chota sa wish toh kar hi sakte hai (he does some much for India, we can at least do this much for him). I have always admired PM Modi for his will to work relentlessly for the country and I wish him all the best for the future. May he have a healthy and prosperous life. Jai Hind.”
- He considers his brother the ‘best coach.’ While talking about him in an interview, Amit said,
My elder brother Ajay deserves a lot of credit. He’s actually the best coach for me. He always derives strategies for me. And I make sure I speak to him before every match.”
- Amit aims to open the ‘Panghal Foundation’ one day. He wants to help the budding boxers by teaching them the minutes of the game and providing them with the best resources.
- Panghal is a part of the TOPS (Target Olympic Podium Scheme) started by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
- During an interview, sharing the details of his training sessions, Amit said,
I train for close to five hours spread across two sessions in the morning and evening, all of it being indoor. I stretch for 30 minutes, jog and warm up, then do pads, punching bag and finally abdominal exercises and relaxation.”
References
↑1 | Hindustan Times |
↑2 | Wikipedia |
↑3 | Olympics.com |
↑4 | Instagram- Amit Panghal |