Vikas: Next 20-odd days most important time in my life

As he approaches his second Olympics in about three weeks time, Vikas Krishan strongly feels that he belongs to the elite league and deserves to win an Olympic medal.

Vikas Krishnan shifted from welterweight to middleweight after the 2012 London Olympics.

A lot has changed about Vikas Krishan Yadav since the time he was crowned a World Youth champion in 2010. The only thing that has remained constant about him is his rock solid confidence.

As he approaches his second Olympics in about three weeks time, Vikas, who has bagged two Asian Games medals (including a gold), a World championship bronze and an Asian championship silver, strongly feels that he belongs to the elite league and deserves to win an Olympic medal.

Having forgotten his controversial exit from the London Olympics four years ago, Vikas, who shifted from welterweight to middleweight, left no stone unturned in the qualification phase (as he tried both professional and amateur routes before qualifying as an amateur) and is doing the same for the Rio Games.

“I am working on every aspect of my game — strength, fitness and boxing. As per my training schedule, I will do endurance till the next week before switching to speed training. The whole training schedule is prepared by well-known US-based boxing coach Willie Moses and I am following it,” Vikas told Sportstar in an interview.

For the 24-year-old, climbing the Olympic podium is the only objective in life. “My weight and performance level have increased with my age. I feel this is the time when I must win something in the Olympics. Everything is focused on that. The next 20-odd days are the most important period in my life and I want to give my best in this period.”

In a recent media interaction Vikas said he was capable of winning a bronze medal in the Rio Games. A smart thinker, Vikas explained why he did not make a taller claim. “Everyone claims he is aspiring to be an Olympic gold medallist, but it is not easy. The way I had trained at that time and the way I assessed myself, I thought I was good enough to win a bronze medal. Till last Monday, I was confident of beating 17 out of 27 boxers in my weight (which would have helped me win a bronze).

“Now the way I am training, I think, I can do even better. Everything depends upon how I train and how much of confidence my training gives me. It is easier said than done.”

Vikas hoped that the experienced boxing trio (including Shiva Thapa and Manoj Kumar) would return good results for the country. “Even though just three of us have qualified this time, we are among the better boxers in the world and should perform well in the Olympics,” he said.