vijender
Indian boxer Vijender Singh along with Tanzania's Francis Cheka during a press conference ahead of "Night of the Champion" in New Delhi on Dec 16, 2016IANS

Vijender Singh continues to be a history-maker for India. After creating ripples as an amateur, not many expected him to make as much of an impact in the pro boxing scene, but he has indeed proved his critics wrong. One win after another, Vijender has almost bossed every single bout he has gone into.

On Saturday, he defends his WBO Asia Pacific super middleweight title for the first time against Francis Cheka. The fight takes place at Thyagaraj Sports Complex in New Delhi.

Boxing in India hardly has any fans as almost every sport is overshadowed by cricket. However, good news is that internationally-famed sports are slowly and steadily getting their share of interest from Indians as well.

If boxing over the years has been getting oodles of popularity in India (in a positive way, we mean), thank the likes of Mary Kom and Vijender. Here's a look at the top boxers from India over the years.

 

1. Vijender Singh

Age: 31

Place of birth: Bhiwani, Haryana

Olympics medals: Bronze (2008)

Amateur awards:

World Championships

Bronze – 2009 Milan

Commonwealth Games

Silver - 2006 Melbourne

Bronze - 2010 Delhi

Silver - 2014 Glasgow

Asian Games

Gold – 2010 Guangzhou

Bronze – 2006 Doha

Asian championships

Silver - 2007

Bronze - 2009

Pro boxing record: 7-0-0

2. Mary Kom

Age: 33

Place of birth: Kangathei, Manipur

Olympics medals: Bronze (2012)

Amateur awards:

Asian Women's Boxing Championship

Gold – 2003 Hisar

Gold – 2005 Kaohsiung

Silver – 2008 Guwahati

Gold – 2010 Astana

Gold – 2012 Ulaanbaatar

Women's World Amateur Boxing Championships

Silver – 2001 Scranton

Gold – 2002 Antalya

Gold – 2005 Podolsk

Gold – 2006 New Delhi

Gold – 2008 Ningpo City

Gold – 2010 Bridgetown

Asian Games

Bronze – 2010 Guangzhou

Gold – 2014 Incheon

3. Shiva Thapa

Age: 23

Place of birth: Guwahati, Assam

Olympics medals: None

Amateur awards: 

Men's World Amateur Boxing Championships

Bronze - 2015 Doha

4. Akhil Kumar

Age: 35

Place of birth: Rohtak, Haryana

Olympics medals: None

Amateur awards:

Commonwealth Games

Gold - 2006 Melbourne

Asian Championships

Bronze - 2007 Ulan Bator

5. Hawa Singh

One of the most unknown male boxers from India, who remained a sensation during the 1960s and 1970s, Hawa Singh is the reason Indian stars like Vijender and Akhil have reached the pinnacle of boxing in India. The former heavyweight boxer established the now-world renowned Bhiwani Boxing Club (BBC) back in the 70s.

Born: December 1937 

Died: August 2000

Place of birth: Bhiwani, Haryana

Amateur record:

Asian Games

Gold - 1966 Bangkok

Gold - 1970 Bangkok

Other accolades

11-time national champion

Arjuna award – 1966

Dronacharya award – 1999