2012 yearender: Indian boxing takes blows galore in disappointing 2012

Indian boxing's euphoric rise in the past four years met a sudden fall as a disappointing Olympic campaign was followed by international suspension in a thoroughly forgettable 2012, which was saved from being complete bummer by M C Mary Kom's bronze in London.

Indian boxing had risen considerably in profile after Vijender Singh brought home its first Olympic medal – a bronze -- from Beijing four years ago.

What followed was a steady stream of international medals that gave the impression of the sport being on continuous rise.

But it got a reality check this year as none of the seven male boxers, who made the cut for the London Olympics, managed to finish on the podium.

Even though Mary Kom ensured that the boxing contingent did not return empty-handed from London, the five-time world ,champion's commendable feat could not hide the overall disappointment.

The biggest star of them all, Vijender, lost in the quarterfinals.

None of the other six qualified boxers, including World Championships bronze-medallist Vikas Krishan, could make much of an impression as they battled to adjust to a scoring system that required better endurance even though a couple of them could count themselves unlucky given the disparity that plagued Olympic judging.

It was the kind of disparity that drew intervention from the International Boxing Association (AIBA) and led to the suspension of three judges and a couple of decisions being overturned in the middle of the Games.

However, inconsistent judging can hardly be an excuse for the Indians, who seemed under-prepared at the biggest sporting show on earth.

It was left to veteran Mary Kom (51kg) to save the blushes for the eight-strong contingent, which had left for the British capital amid massive hype.

'Magnificent Mary', as she is called by AIBA for her unprecedented five world titles, was the lone Indian in fray when women's boxing made its Olympic debut in three weight categories.

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