Satish Kumar Yadav [1]The New Indian Express is an Indian amateur boxer. He is the first Indian boxer to qualify for the Olympics in the super heavyweight (+91 Kg) category. [2]Olympics.com
Contents
Wiki/Biography
Satish Kumar was born on Thursday, 4 May 1989 (age 32 years; as of 2021) in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh. His zodiac sign is Taurus. When Satish was in his teens, one of his elder brothers was serving in the Indian Army. Satish got inspired by him and decided to join the Indian Army. In 2008, he went on to join the Indian army as a Sepoy. He was posted in Ranikhet, Uttrakhand, where he got noticed for his tall physique at a boxing camp and was compelled to give the sport a try by the boxing coaches. Although Kumar was good at sports in his formative years, dabbling in cricket and hockey, he never considered making a career in sports.
Physical Appearance
[3]AIBA Height: 6′ 2″
[4]AIBA Weight: 98 Kg
Body Measurements (approx.): Chest 42″, Waist 32″, Biceps 16″
Hair Colour: Black
Eye Colour: Black
Family
His father is a farmer in Bulandshahr, Uttar Pradesh. Not much is known about his mother. He has three brothers. One of his elder brothers is in the Indian Army.
Career
Satish started his career as a Sepoy in the Indian Army in 2008. He started professional boxing when he was 19 years old. He took part in various local and state level boxing competitions and made his debut at the national-level at the age of 21. In 2011, Satish won a silver medal at the Senior National Boxing Championships.
In 2012, he defeated Praveen Kumar in the finals of the Indian National Championships and won a gold medal. He stepped into international boxing in 2013. He won a bronze at the 2013 Korotkov Memorial Tournament in Russia and went on to represent India at ASBC Asian Continental Championships in Amman, Jordan.
In the same year, he participated in the AIBA World Championships in Almaty, Kazakhstan, but was declared medically unfit in his pre-quarterfinal bout due to an injury, eventually forcing him to settle for a silver.
Satish soon made a comeback to the game and won a bronze at the 2014 Asian Games held in Icheon and then a bronze at the 2015 Asian Boxing Championships in Bangkok. The Rio Olympics were a huge setback for Satish as he suffered a grave injury which ruled him out of the Olympics. In 2018, Satish won a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games.
In the same year, he claimed a gold at the Grand Prix Ustinad Labem in the Czech Republic. He also won a silver at the inaugural Indian Open. In 2020, he won the ticket to the Tokyo Olympics; becoming the first Indian heavyweight boxer (91kg category) to ever qualify for an Olympics. The Olympics were postponed to 2021 due the the COVID-19 outbreak.
Apart from boxing, he is also serving in the Indian army. Satish is included in the Indian government’s Target Olympics Podium Scheme (TOPS). He is also associated with JWS Sports.
Medals
- Silver at Senior National Championships in 2011
- Gold at Senior National Championships in 2013
- Bronze at Asian Games in 2014
- Silver at Asian Championships in 2015
- Gold at Senior National Championships in 2015
- Silver at Commonwealth Games in 2018
Favourite Things
- Beverage: Tea
- Boxer(s): Vikas Krishan Yadav, Vijender Singh
Facts/Trivia
- Satish loves listening to music in his leisure time.
- He hits the gym daily to maintain his physical fitness.
- Satish was 18 years old when he joined the Indian army. During one of the boxing camps, when he was advised to join boxing, he didn’t exactly know what boxing was. He used to think that boxing was WWE. Talking about it in an interview, Satish said,
I heard about boxing for the first time in 2008. Otherwise, I used to think that WWE is boxing. I knew Undertaker and John Cena but not real boxing.”
- Satish credits the Indian army for whatever he has achieved in his life. Talking about it in an interview, Kumar said,
If it wasn’t for the army, I don’t think I would be where I am now. I come from a place where not many set goals for themselves early in life but after I joined the army, I got the direction.”
- Kumar is coached by Gurbaksh Singh Sandhu at the SSCB boxing club.
- In 2018, he was awarded the Arjuna Award by the Government of India for his contribution to boxing.