Nanao Singh Thokchom

Thokchom Nanao Singh (born 8 January 1991) is an Indian boxer from Khoijuman Maning Leikai village in Bishnupur district of Manipur.[1] He trains at Pune-based Army Sports Institute and is supported by Olympic Gold Quest, a not-for-profit foundation to identify and support Indian athletes.

Thokchom Nanao Singh
Statistics
Real nameThokchom Nanao Singh
Weight(s)Light flyweight (48 kg)
NationalityIndian
Born (1991-01-08) 8 January 1991
Khoijuman Maning Leikai (near Bishnupur), Manipur, India
Medal record
Men's boxing
Representing  India
Commonwealth Youth Games
Gold medal – first place 2008 Pune Light flyweight
AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships
Gold medal – first place 2008 Guadalajara Light flyweight
Asian Amateur Boxing Championships
Silver medal – second place 2009 Zhuhai Light flyweight

Early years

Thokchom Nanao Singh was born to Thokchom Tobobi Singh and Keinahanbi Devi in Khoijuman Maning Leikai village (35 kilometres (22 mi) from Imphal) in Bishnupur district of Manipur.[2] He took interest in boxing since the age of eight. His interest in the sport was spurred on by his friend, a boxer, who once took him to a boxing ring. Nanao Singh drew further inspiration from the success of Dingko Singh, a Manipur boxer who won a gold medal at the 1998 Asian Games, and Muhammad Ali.[3][4] Being the youngest child in their family, his parents wanted him to focus on education instead of sport. When Nanao Singh first put on a pair of boxing gloves, his father got furious and sent him to a boarding school so that his focus could be redirected to education. Nanao Singh ran away from this school and returned home. After seeing his dedication to boxing, his father introduced him to a local boxing coach who groomed him initially. In 2000, Nanao Singh joined the Pune-based Army Sports Institute.[4] He was the successful outcome of the institute's joint collaboration with the Sports Authority of India whose aim was to win international medals for India.[5]

Amateur career

Nanao Singh started out boxing in India by winning the sub-junior national championships consecutively in 2004, 2005 and 2006. In the years 2007 and 2008, he was the National Junior Champion.[6]

Nanao Singh represented India in the 48-kg category at the 2007 Commonwealth Boxing Championships in Liverpool.[7] He won a silver medal at this championship despite being a junior-level player. Based on this performance, the Indian national coach predicted Nanao Singh's success at the 2008 Commonwealth Youth Games.[8][9] As per his coach's expectations, he won the gold medal at the Youth Games.[10] A few weeks after this victory, Nanao Singh won the gold medal – the lone medalist for India – at the inaugural AIBA Youth World Boxing Championships that was held in Guadalajara, Mexico.[11] In 2008, he also won the gold medal at the Juvenile Olympic Games that were held in Cuba.[12] At the 2009 Asian Amateur Boxing Championships, he narrowly missed the gold medal in his category. The Indian coach was happy with the overall performance of the boxers and predicted a bright future for Nanao Singh.[13] Following this win, he was ranked fifth with a tally of 1400 points.[14]

At the 2009 AIBA World Boxing Championships, he was seeded second in the 48-kg category.[15] However, Nanao Singh faltered in the second round itself where he lost by a single point.[16][17] Owing to this poor result, he dropped three places to eighth in the light flyweight ranking.[18] Towards the end of 2009, Nanao Singh represented Team Asia at the season-ending President's Cup, the only AIBA event.[19]

At the 2010 season-opening Super Cup Boxing, Nanao Singh won the title in the 48-kg category.[20] In the same year, the Asian Boxing Confederation organized an invitational prize event that was called as the Champion of Champions. Along with three other Indian boxers – Vijender Singh, Dinesh Kumar and Akhil Kumar – Nanao Singh represented his country in the two-day championship;[21] he lost in the opening round itself.[22] For the Commonwealth Boxing Championships, Nanao Singh failed to qualify because he had lost out to another boxer in the trials.[23]

In January 2010, Nanao Singh injured his hand and this put him out of boxing.[24] Due to this injury, he was unable to participate in the Indian National Championships. In June 2010, he underwent a surgery for his fractured arm.[25]

Samsung chose a list of 10 Indian sports-persons as a part of Sports Ratna, a scholarship program with an aim to support players for the 2010 Asian Games. Nanao Singh was one among this list of four boxers, four shooters, and two wrestlers.[26] Olympic Gold Quest, a not-for-profit foundation to identify and support Indian athletes, chose him because of his talent and bright future.[27]

References
  1. Sapam, Robert (4 November 2008). "Warm welcome awaits Nanao". The Telegraph. Kolkata. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  2. Singh, L. C. K. (6 January 2009). "Thokchom Nanao Singh brings glory to Manipur with boxing gold medal in Mexico". Thaiindian.com. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  3. Lundup, Tashi (15 March 2009). "Nanao comes into his own". The Indian Express. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  4. "Defying parents, secret of Nanao's success". Zee News. 5 November 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  5. Mandrekar, Kabir (9 February 2009). "ASI, SAI join hands to train youths". The Indian Express. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  6. Tiwari, Mansi (9 November 2008). "Rise and shine". The Economic Times. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  7. "Camp over, junior pugilists leave for Commonwealth meet". The Indian Express. 21 July 2007. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  8. "Nanao bags gold at Youth World Championship". The Hindu. 2 November 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  9. "Indian pugilists ready for action". The Hindu. 8 October 2008. Archived from the original on 12 October 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  10. Marar, Nandakumar (18 October 2008). "Thokchom Nanao bags boxing gold". The Hindu. Archived from the original on 20 October 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  11. "Gold for Nanao". The Hindu. 3 November 2008. Archived from the original on 8 November 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  12. "Nanao Singh in Youth World Championship final". The Hindu. 1 November 2008. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  13. "India's best-ever showing so far: coach". The Hindu. 17 June 2009. Archived from the original on 28 June 2009. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  14. "Vijender No. 2 in rankings – Akhil, Nanao Singh and Dinesh are the other Indians in top 10". The Telegraph. 21 August 2009. Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  15. "Indians at world boxing championships". The Times of India. 31 August 2009. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  16. "Nanao Singh crashes out of World Championships". The Hindu. 6 September 2009. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  17. "Would win a better medal next time: Vijender". The Times of India. 14 September 2009. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  18. Pansare, Rajesh (29 September 2009). "Vijender is No 1 boxer in the world". Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  19. "Indian boxers all set for season-ending President's Cup". The Hindu. 5 December 2009. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  20. "Nanao, Suranjoy, Dilbagh win Super Cup Boxing Championship". The Times of India. 17 January 2010. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  21. "Vijender, Akhil to compete in China tourney". The Times of India. 29 January 2010. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  22. "Vijender gets silver at Champion of Champions tournament". The Times of India. 2 February 2010. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  23. "Vijender, Akhil to lead Indian challenge". CNN-IBN. 27 February 2010. Archived from the original on 13 October 2012. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  24. "Vijender stays No. 1". The Telegraph. 19 May 2010. Archived from the original on 8 June 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  25. "IBF asks boxers to come for Nationals or risk axe from CWG". The Times of India. 6 July 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  26. "Abhinav Bindra in 'Sports Ratna' list". The Hindu. 30 June 2010. Archived from the original on 6 July 2010. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
  27. Awasthi, Shailendra (14 January 2010). "Gold Quest set to sign Suranjoy and Nanao". The Indian Express. Retrieved 22 October 2010.
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