Outside The Box
Riddle: how could the loser of the WBO Oriental Super Middleweight Boxing Title end up with the winner’s belt? Because his opponent was disqualified? No. Because he stole it? No. Because the champion, Vijender Singh, offered to give the belt he won to his Chinese rival as a gesture of peace. Yes! After the Olympic medal winning boxer beat defending champion Zulpikar Maimaitiali of China, the 31 year old promptly declared that he wanted to hand the championship belt back to the Chinese boxer. Why? Because the fight in Mumbai took place against the backdrop of a border dispute between the two countries over Doklam, a plateau that lies at the junction between China, the north-eastern Indian state of Sikkim and Bhutan. The Indian fighter dedicated his win to “India-China friendship” and what better way to do it than to offer to give up the belt. It is not clear if the competition officials will allow him to go through with the gesture, but surely it would be a bit below the belt if they refused to sanction it.