Vijender, on the other hand, honed his skills at the Germany event and returned with a gold after beating Russian, Artem Chebotarev 24-13. Australia, Italy, Germany and Mangolia were some of the other participating nations. According to national coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu, the event was a perfect build up for the Beijing Games as the youngsters rubbed shoulders with Beijing-bound boxers of other nations.
The team: Jitender Kumar (51kg), Akhil Kumar (54 kg), A.L. Lakra (57 kg), Vijender (75 kg), Dinesh Kumar (81 kg).

Born in Bhiwani, the cradle of boxers, it was natural for young Vijender to embrace the sport his brother Manoj, himself a national champion, pursued. He was hardly in his teens when he donned Manoj’s sizeable gloves. Spotting his extraordinary talent, Sports Authority of India coach Jagdish Singh was quick to induct him into the Bhiwani Boxing Club. The stint gave him exposure in the national circuit and kindled his fire to bestride the hurdles and reign atop. And as he grew up, his dreams grew bigger.Determined to succeed as he was, it didn’t take Vijender long to master the tricks of the pugilists’ trade. He was only 15 when he buckled twin national titles, both junior and senior. Further noteworthy performances earned him a berth in the 2004 Athens Olympics, a dream that was probably realised too early.

Blame it on big-stage blues or complacency, but Vijender succumbed to lesser-known Turk Mustafa Karagollu in the first round of the men’s light-welter category. Disappointed he was, but not disheartened. Taking the setback in its stride, Vijender resumed practice. What followed were workouts, workouts and more workouts, sans funds, sponsors or recognition. But he didn’t spare any chance to compete in tournaments, even local tournaments. Meanwhile, he switched to the middleweight category and found the arena amiable to his stature.It was only a matter of time before Vijender’s resolve and fortitude bore dividends. He clinched the bronze at the Doha Asiad 2006 and silver at the Melbourne Commonwealth Games. Though he was affected by a back injury early this year, he recovered quickly enough to strike gold in the Olympic qualifier in Kazakhstan. To further galvanise his Olympic medal hopes, the Arjuna awardee drubbed reigning Olympic gold-medallist Bakhtiyar Artayev of Kazakhstan 12-7 in the quarterfinal of the inaugural AIBA President’s Cup in Sinjhuang City. The win was sweeter as the Kazak had edged him out in the semifinal of the Asian Games. However, Vijender yielded to Thailand’s Angkhan Chomphuphu in a controversial semifinal bout.The stint with German boxers, followed by an international event, should see the five-member Indian squad in good shape. National coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu expects his boys to peak by the Olympics. And certainly, Vijender will be his trump card.