Boxer Alfiya starts preparation for Asian Youth Championship

 

 

 

By Paritosh Pramanik

THE road ahead will be more difficult and as Indian boxer Alfiya Pathan conquers peaks one after the other, the journey will be tougher than the previous one.  
The AIBA World Youth Champion is aware of the fact that journey won’t be easy and she will have to work harder.
After winning the World Youth Boxing title in April, Nagpur’s Alfiya has started preparation for future competitions. The latest would be the Asian Youth Championship which is going to be held in Dubai in the month of August.
The expectations would definitely be high from Alfiya who has raised her bar with the AIBA world youth title at Poland.
Alfiya, who was declared as the best boxer of World Youth Championship by AIBA, is determined to improve her performance and fulfill her dream: Representing India in Olympics.
The southpaw pugilist has been training hard at Divisional Sports Complex under the watchful eyes of coach Ganesh Purohit. Her day starts with jogging, running and stamina building exercises. With COVID protocols in place, Alfiya is following all the SOPs. “After returning from Poland, I took rest for hardly 4-5 days. I had been away from home for more than six months (181 days to be precise). But I don’t want to rest on past laurels. There are several competitions lined up. Hence I have to keep myself fit and agile,” Alfiya told ‘The Hitavada’.
The training programme has been prepared by her coaches and she is following them rigorously. “My coaches have chalked out a proper training programme for me and I am following them studiously. I have to maintain my weight and also need to build up more strength. My daily schedule starts with light jogging and running at the Divisional Sports Complex in Mankapur. I am also doing several strengthening exercises.
“Ganesh Sir is there helping me, as always. I am following his instructions,” said Alfiya, who will be competing in 81+ weight category.
Alfiya, who had recorded three out of three wins to clinch the gold medal for India at Poland, will have to be more agile on her feet and have to increase her strength. “I am working on building my strength. The competitions from here will be more tougher and I don’t want to lag behind. I am doing strength training and working hard on improving my agility with carious stretching exercises,” she informed.

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Alfiya needs to work harder from here on: Purohit

 

Ganesh Purohit, NIS coach of Alfiya said that her student needs to work much harder from here on. “The future is very bright for Alfiya. But she will have to work much harder from here on. She needs to make her body strong to bear the heavy punches which would receive in her future bouts. I am working with her on that aspect. In boxing, you are bound to get hit by heavy punches and you have to be prepared for that. She should be able to take that,” said Purohit.
“Alfiya will have to maintain her weight below 85 kgs and we are working on that aspect also. Apart from weight, we are working on how to become more agile and how to be swift on feet. Alfiya is a hard worker and knows that it is in her own hands how to respond to the training schedule. The next assignment is just over a month away and she would be match ready by the time her bout is announced,” said Purohit, who is instrumental in introducing Alfiya to boxing.