Kaur Singh (; 1948/1949 – 27 April 2023) was an Indian heavyweight champion

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: *Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing * Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

from

Punjab Punjab (; ; also romanised as Panjāb or Panj-Āb) is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia. It is located in the northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising areas of modern-day eastern Pakistan and no ...

. Singh won three gold medals for senior national boxing championship, Asian Boxing Championship and

Asian Games The Asian Games, also known as Asiad, is a continental multi-sport event held every four years for athletes of Asia. The Games were regulated by Asian Games Federation from the 1951 Asian Games, first Games in New Delhi, India in 1951, until ...

Early life

Singh was born in a

Jat Sikh Jat Sikh or Jatt Sikh (Gurmukhi: ਜੱਟ ਸਿੱਖ) is an ethnoreligious group, a subgroup of the Jat people whose traditional religion is Sikhism, originating from the Indian subcontinent. They are one of the dominant communities in Pu ...

Family of village Khanal Khurd in Sangrur,

's Malwa region. He was a small-time farmer before joining the Indian army in 1973 as havildar at the age of 23 where he participated in the India-Pakistan war; and was awarded

Sena Medal The Sena Medal () is awarded to members of the Indian army, of all ranks, "for such individual acts of exceptional devotion to duty or courage as have special significance for the Army." Awards may be made posthumously and a bar is authorized for ...

for his bravery and received the Vishisht Sewa Medal in 1988.

Boxing career

In 1979, Singh won a gold medal at the senior national boxing championship and remained the holder of the gold medal for four years till 1983. In 1980, Singh won a gold medal at the Asian Boxing Championship in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

. In 1982, Singh won a gold medal at the heavyweight category

held at New Delhi, in the same year he got the

Arjuna Award The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards given for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjun ...

by the

Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports The Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports is a branch of the Government of India which administers the Department of Youth Affairs and the Department of Sports in India. Mansukh Mandaviya is the current Minister of Youth Affairs and Sports foll ...

. In 1983, the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

awarded Singh with the

Padma Shri award The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

for outstanding contribution to Indian sports. Singh retired from boxing career in 1984 after participating and representing India in the Los Angeles Olympics where he won two bouts, but was defeated in the third match.

Fighting against Muhammad Ali

On 27 January 1980, Singh fought at Delhi's National Stadium against

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

in an exhibition match of four-rounds. "Us de mukke bahut hi dumdar si (His punches had great power). I clearly remember that jab, his famous jab. It seemed to come out of nowhere. He used his right hand to block my punches, and his counterpunch to hit me. His speed was amazing; not once during those four rounds did the speed drop. He was shorter than me but his ring craft and movement took him out of my reach," said Singh.

Death

Singh died on 27 April 2023, at the age of 74.

Legacy

A biopic film of Singh, '' Padma Shri Kaur Singh'', was slated to release in 2020, with producer

Karam Batth Karam Batth is an Indian-Canadian Punjabi actor and producer. Batth will make his acting debut with self-produced biopic of the Indian boxer Kaur Singh, playing the lead role as Kaur Singh, in the film ''Padma Shri Kaur Singh''. The film is ex ...

playing Singh. The film highlighted apathy of governments in releasing the prize money they announced. Film release was delayed due to COVID-19 and then due to clash with other film releases in 2022. Karam Batth in an interview said "It was supposed to release on July 8 but the makers of '' Shareek 2'' shifted its release date to the same Friday. I was fine with it as both the films are quite different. But then team '' Sohreyan Da Pind Aa Gaya'' also announced its release date on the same day, which made us postpone ours to July 22."

Exhibition boxing record

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Singh, Kaur 1940s births Year of birth uncertain 2023 deaths Asian Games gold medalists for India Asian Games boxers for India Asian Games gold medalists in boxing Boxers at the 1982 Asian Games Medalists at the 1982 Asian Games Recipients of the Arjuna Award Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports