AIBA to present Vikas Krishan with 2016 Best boxer award

“In recognition of your achievements throughout the year, AIBA would like to use the occasion to present you with the 2016 AIBA Pro Boxing (APB) Best Boxer award,” AIBA president said in a letter to two-time Olympian Krishan.

Krishan won gold medal (light-weight) in 2010 Asian Games, bronze (welter-weight) in the World championships in 2011 and bronze (middle-weight) in the 2014 Asian games and competed in two APB bouts this year.

After losing the first bout to Kenya's Nickson Abaka, the Indian came back strongly to win the next that was organised in New Delhi by the Professional Boxing Organisation of India (PBOI).

The 24-year old Krishan is currently training in New Jersey. “I am told I am the first Indian boxer to get such an award. That is a great thing but I cannot say that it makes me very happy because the Olympic disappointment is still there,” he told PTI news agency.

"I have decided to set small goals for myself. So right now I am focusing on the World championships next year. Tokyo Olympics is far off and by that time I intend to have a flawless game. I am training like a professional boxer so that I master the art of defence.

“I want to build a momentum which carries me through. In 2019 when the Olympic qualifiers start, I want to be the first Indian boxer to qualify so that I get enough time to plan. I qualified too late for Rio, just a couple of months before the Games. I don't want that to happen again.”