He looked to the sky and thanked his coach and mentor, Dhananjay Tiwariwith folded hands. Tiwari he was not among the spectators of the Mahatma Mandir Complex boxing in the Gandhinagar arena to cheer and watch his ward secure the biggest medal of his fledgling boxing career. The coach tragically died in a car accident while cycling from Mumbai to Gujarat to watch his ward in action.
“I care about this medal. I will always be grateful to my coach for shaping my career. I will miss him,” said Dubey.
After winning his quarter-final match on Monday, Dubey called his Mumbai-based coach to inform him of his high-octane clash against reigning national champion Sumit Kundu in the semifinals. The excited coach got ready for a bike ride from Mumbai to Gandhinagar. But he met a car accident on his way and succumbed to his injuries when Dubey won his 75kg class bout against the services boxer.
“It was his dream that I would win my fight against Kundu and fight for the gold medal. I talked to him on Monday and told him I was fighting Kundu. He was so excited and said he would come for my fight. He said, “I know you have the ability to beat him and win gold,” Dubey said after winning the title.
Dubey kept his promise to his manager and took gold by beating Mizoram’s Malsawmtluanga 5-0 in Wednesday’s final. “It was a big shock to me (hearing of him dead). At one point, I was wondering how I would fight in the final. But that’s what he wanted from me: to win gold,” Dubey said.
Dubey said he will now travel directly to Mumbai to attend Tiwari’s funeral. “He loved driving and often drove long distances in his Bullet. In the past he had been to Goa on his bicycle many times. He was in the third lane and suddenly a tractor went from the first lane and hit him,” he said of the incident. mortal.
For the past eight years, Tiwari has not only mentored Dubey at his academy but has also supported the boxer’s finances. “He was my eldest when I started. He has supported me a lot, not only in the ring but also in my life because my family’s financial conditions were not good. He has been with me for eight years. I trained at the Dhananjay boxing club in Mumbai Western Malad“Dubey said.
It’s not the first time the 22-year-old has fought fate. He lost his father, Premnath, in the first wave of the Covid-19 pandemic and is now supported by his brothers Shaklesh, Abhishek and Deepak.
