With Olympic boxing on the ropes, Japan fighters fear dashed dreams

Agencies
December 19, 2018

Hachioji (Japan), Dec 19: Yudai Shigeoka has long dreamed of becoming a world boxing champion, but a decision that could see the sport excluded from the 2020 Olympics might deal his hopes a knockout blow.

The International Olympic Committee said last month it was suspending preparations for boxing at the Tokyo 2020 Games over governance concerns, leaving Japanese boxers in limbo.

"All of us have been practising for the Tokyo Olympics," the 21-year-old told AFP after an evening training session at the Takushoku University gym in the Tokyo suburb of Hachioji.

"Honestly, it'll be shocking for boxers if a dream that is right in front of us just disappears."

The IOC took the decision over concerns about the sport's troubled governing body, the International Boxing Association (AIBA), which is now under investigation by the Olympic committee.

IOC President Thomas Bach declined to promise that boxing would be part of the 2020 Games, though he pledged at a Tokyo press conference to "make all efforts to protect the athletes, as we always do".

Japan's boxing federation is taking the issue seriously, with its president warning of "major damage" to the boxing world if the sport is excluded from the 2020 Games.

"The number of boxing athletes could decline because of this," president Sadanobu Uchida told news agency.

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News Network
March 27,2024

IPLbettingsuicide.jpg

Bengaluru: Darshan Babu is an engineer who is fond of betting on cricket matches and has been placing major bets on Indian Premier League (IPL) games since 2021. He often borrows money after losing a bet, or to place one when he is short on funds. His 23-year-old wife, tired of the constant harassment by creditors, died by suicide.

Ranjitha was found hanging at her home in Karnataka's Chitradurga on March 18. According to the family, Darshan had racked up a debt of over Rs 1 crore.

He worked as an assistant engineer in the Minor Irrigation Department at Hosadurga and had been ensnared in the realm of IPL betting from 2021 to 2023. This took a major toll on the couple's finances. Allegedly, he had borrowed over Rs 1.5 crore to place bets after his luck ran out and he lost all his money. While he managed to return Rs 1 crore, cops say that he still has a pending loan of ₹ 84 lakh.

Ranjitha married Darshan in 2020. She realised the truth about Darshan's involvement in betting in 2021, claims her father Venkatesh.

In his complaint, Venkatesh said that his daughter was extremely distressed due to the constant harassment by moneylenders and this led to her suicide. He has also named 13 men who had allegedly lent the money.

He said that his son-in-law was lured into betting with a promise of quick money.

"He (Darshan) was not willing to get into betting, but the suspects forced him saying it was an easy way to get rich. They promised to finance his betting activities against some blank cheques as security," he said.

Cops during their investigation found a suicide note, where she detailed the harassment they faced. Darshan and Ranjitha have a two-year-old son.

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