"Sad we missed out on gold medal, learn many things in tournament": Deepak Kumar on winning bronze at Boxing Worlds
May 16, 2023
By Vivek Prabhakar Singh
New Delhi [India], May 16 : Indian boxer Deepak Kumar reflected on his journey in IBA Men's World Boxing Championship 2023 where he won a bronze and even though he is sad to have missed out on the gold medal, he talked about the benefits from exposure in such tournaments.
Deepak displayed unwavering grit against the two-time Worlds bronze medallist Billal Bennama of France and went down 3-4 in the semifinals after the bout was reviewed at the championship held in Tashkent last month.
"It is very sad that we missed out on a gold medal after coming so close. This disappointment is there but in a competition we also get to learn so many things. So, I am happy," Kumar told ANI.
"That was a happy moment for me because it was a world championship medal, which is very important. Very happy to win it but disappointed too because I could have been at the number one position," he added.
This was the second time Deepak participated in the World Championship.
Expectations were quite high after Deepak won silver at Strandja Memorial, Bulgaria.
"For me, it was a big thing. It was the second World Championship for me. In the first one, it was just a participation, this time there were a lot of expectations to do well."
Deepak has now set his eyes on the upcoming Asian Games, which will be held from September 23 to October 8, 2023 at Hangzhou in China.
"Next few months are very important for me and I will prepare accordingly and the focus will also be on the competition. The way we are preparing for the world championship, the same way we will prepare for Asian Games. Confidence level has gone up that we will do well."
