India vs U.S.: Vijender Knows What Gausha Didn't

London 2012: The U.S.'s main medal hope in boxing Terrell Gausha might have lost his bout before he took on India's lead hope Vijender Singh

Vijender Singh, in the blue corner, celebrates along with his coach after winning his bout. Picture courtesy: Reuters.

By Francis Adams

Terrell Gausha (pronounced guh-Shay) committed a blunder soon after he had beaten Armenia's Andranik Hakobyan in the first round, a match that seemed going the other way but for Gausha's combative response that saw him through.
 After that win and before he could face off with India's Vijender Singh, Gausha told Sports Illustrated that he expected his bout with the Indian to be more relaxed and one he was more ready for.
 It was a mistake he visibly realized a little late, that is, after trailing the Indian by a point at the end of round one of their three-rounds of three-minutes each bout.
  Down 3-4, Gausha adopted clever counter tactics in the next two rounds, or so he thought, such as a change in strategy of not rushing at his opponent and then suddenly using the shock-and-awe approach with which he had floored Hakobyan.
  Unfortunately they did not work against Singh, who was equally alert to ensure he sustained that first round lead and march into the quarterfinals with a 16-15 victory.
  Before the Olympics, both, Gausha and Singh were somewhat on similar paths, battling gremlins, not of their own, but those created by the expectations of fans. People had written them off: Gausha for adding on
extra girth to his frame and for briefly going off the boxing radar and Singh for having lost in the Commonwealth Games in 2010.
  However, both had their eyes firmly set on the Olympics. Gausha sensed his moment of surge when the United States' main hope in the middleweight, Jesse Hart, made an early exit at the 2011 World Championships. The USA Boxing reopened the competition in an attempt to install a worthier prospect. Gausha, who had not even entered for the 2011 National Championship, stepped up to carry that mantle. He re-joined the World Series of Boxing, got his focus back, cut out on junk food and entered the 2012 National Championships in March as an unseeded player.
 According to the SI, he won six bouts in seven days, including a close 3-2 victory over Hart, the last match of the championship. In May, he qualified for the Olympics by winning gold at the Americas Olympic Quailfication Tournament. "I had to make it work. It was my last chance," Gausha told the SI.
 Singh also knew all-along that this Olympics would be his last chance to leave an indelible mark on world, Olympics and Indian boxing.
 "I have never doubted my ability. Yes I wasn't able to qualify at the world championship but I always knew that if I train hard I will surely qualify. As a sportsperson you can never entertain negative thoughts," Singh had told Times Crest, the Times of India's weekend edition in June.
  Singh says he rededicated himself in training, putting in gruelling hours aimed at building endurance and resolve to stay chin-up until the last moment in the Olympic boxing ring. "I have always believed in hard work and feel there is no substitute for the hours spent at training. I do one rigorous round of training in the morning and then sleep for a while. I once again train in late afternoon," Singh told Times Crest.
  What set the two boxers apart was that Gausha has been burdened by concern of not having enough money to provide his four-year-old daughter the happiness that a child her age deserves. His part-time job as a gas station attendant did not meet the basic requirements of being financially sound. Singh on the other hand, has had endorsement deals in his bag, advertising for products, apart from the regular salary he earned as a Police Officer. In fact, money hasn't been an issue for Singh from the time he brought home a bronze medal from the Beijing Olympics.
  Here, you feel for Gausha and on a societal level wish he would have returned home with a gold or at least a medal to be able to earn rewards as a medal-winner and provide his daughter that happinness.
  It is reported that fellow Ohioans raised funds for Gausha's mother and sister to be at the Olympics and provide the boxer much-needed moral and emotional support at such a mega-event.
  Had Gausha not made the mistake of taking on Singh with a relaxed attitude, he could have clinched that extra point and tilted the result  his way. He should have been alerted by the fact that Singh is a third time Olympian and knows maneuvering negative situations at the mega-stage better than, arguably, any other boxer competing at the Games.
  It is now Singh's turn to not show or have a relaxed attitude against southpaw Abbos Atoev of Uzbekistan in the quarterfinals. Singh had smothered Atoev 7-0 to win gold at the 2010 Asian Games.