If the promotion of a sport at the school level is indicative of its success at the higher level, boxing certainly is not a happening sport in the state.
Nevertheless, one Bangalore school has, for years together, nourished an envious boxing culture, whose legacy is getting richer.
The Eastwood High School boasts a 36-year history in inter-school boxing competitions. Over the last four years, the school has expanded its realm by conducting the Charles and Florence Eastwood annual all-India ICSE/CBSE inter-school tournament.
Named after the late founder-principal and his wife, the tournament attracts pugilists from neighbouring Tamil Nadu and West Bengal, besides teams from a few Bangalore schools.
The school has produced many boxers who have displayed their skills in the national and state circuits. From L Perumal, who turned pro in the late '70s, to Pramita Ray, who represented Karnataka at the 2002 National Games in Hyderabad, a long chain of talent has been nurtured at Eastwood.
Circumstances, rather than choice, paved the way for the promotion of boxing at Eastwood. Gridlocked among many buildings, The Eastwood High School had few options, unlike other schools that own huge grounds and possess large infrastructure.
But why was this contact sport preferred to racquet sports or other indoor games?
Principal Margaretta Eastwood, also the vice-president of Karnataka Amateur Boxing Association (KABA), reasons that her father Charles was passionate about boxing and started inter-house bouts in 1972, just a year after the establishment of the school.
That said, it took the school a great deal of effort to convince parents to allow their children to take up an apparently violent and dangerous sport.
“Parents are commonly against 'risking' their children. We had to convince them that boxing is very much a disciplined and controlled sport. There is a method to it, it is a science, after all,” says Margaretta.
Boxing is a compulsory sport in the school, and exceptions are granted very rarely.
“For boys, punching lessons start from Standard III while for girls, it is Standard VI. The better ones are selected from the beginners. The basic aim is to promote the game at the grass-root level. So far, there have been no untoward incidents that have forced the school to re-think its policy on boxing," says Varadhan, sports secretary and coach.
At present, there are 36 boxers who compete at the Sub-junior and Junior levels, six of whom are girls.
Eastwood claim to be the only ICSE/CBSE institution to organise girls' boxing in the country. The exploits of Laila Ali, daughter of boxing legend Mohammad Ali, inspired Margarette to provide a platform for girls to test their strength.
The pioneering effort of the school has paid rich dividends. “Boxing can definitely increase the confidence and inner strength of a girl. It makes one stand up to the realities and odds that come in life," says Pramita, the former pugilist, now a law student in Pune.
Apart from bagging the overall championship in the all-India tournament on home turf, the school won the Tamil Nadu State Sub-junior title in 2004. But to continue to progress, the school is looking for a sound financial base and upgraded facilities.
“The KABA supports us by providing officials for tournaments. The military too extends a helping hand. But if the KABA provides coaching assistance to the students, it will help the development of the sport," explains Varadhan.
Financial support is vital for the school to field its boxers in more tournaments, because none of the students hold a membership in boxing clubs.
S Nishanth, a tenth standard student, says he is optimistic of taking up a career in boxing. Eastwood High School has obviously ignited the spark in many such pugilists.
