First Olympians-Lost and Found

Four boxers and two athletes represented the nation when Nepal participated in their first Olympics in 1964 in Tokyo. But it was only athletics players who got the attention since then. The boxers were never brought to the limelight by the authorities nor did they seek for the publicity.

Boxers Bhim Bahadur Gurung, Nam Singh Thapa, Om Prasad Pun and Ram Prasad Gurung along with athletes Ganga Bahadur Thapa and Bhupendra Silwal participated in the Tokyo Olympics. Off six athletes duo, Thapa and Silwal and boxer Pun had already breathed their last while the state of Bhim Bahadur is still unknown.

Two athletes were selected for the Olympics in Nepal while four pugilists working for British Army reached Tokyo from Hong Kong. As Hong Kong could not take part in the Olympics, Nepali four boxers got the opportunity in the initiative of the British Army. For that, they returned to the British Army camp after the Summer Olympics. Hence their relation to Nepali sports could not be established.

But almost five decades after their Olympic participation boxer Ram Prasad Gurung and Nam Singh Thapa reappeared in the capital and in the headlines at the sports pages of national dailies, thanks to Nepal Boxing Association (NBA).

They both appeared in the felicitation function organized by NBA last month.

Bhim Bahadur participated in the featherweight (54kg), Ram Prasad Gurung in lightweight (57kg), Om Prasad Pun in light-welterweight (63.5kg) and Nam Singh Thapa in the flyweight (51kg) in the boxing event of the 18^th summer Olympics.

NBA President Rajiv Shrestha said that the NBA was trying to know the status of the other two boxers.  “It is our tribute to the first Olympians of the nation. We want to bring them to surface as they can inspire the new generation,” Shrestha said.  

Nam Singh has been living a retired life in Hong Kong with his wife and daughter. The 67-year-old, who has been visiting his homeland almost once a year, was born in the Mankamana VDC, Syangja.

Ram Prasad has also been living a retired life in Patiyani Village, Chitwan with his wife, five daughters and a son. Born on November 14, 1945, in Darong, Syangja, Ram Prasad had retired from military service as a captain in the early 90s.

He began his boxing career after joining the British Army at the age of 14. “I started my boxing career in Sungai Petani in Malaysia as a novice” recalled Ram Prasad.

Ram Prasad Gurung described his Olympic participation as the proudest moment of his life. "It was a unique experience to carry the flag of my nation and participate in the Olympic march past," said Gurung. He was 19 years old when he lost his bout against Hungarian boxer Janos Kajdi in the second round. Gurung, who got the bye in his first round, was ranked 17^th in his category.

Ram Prasad revealed that he had once visited the National Sports Council in 1997. "When I came to know there was a provision of pension for us, I had visited the council once in 1997. They used to send a small amount to my bank account and I was happy to receive it since it was a kind of recognition by the nation," recalled Gurung. "I was planning to invest the amount in boxing but I stopped being paid since 2000. I never came back to the council since then," he added.

Nam Singh, who lost against Bob Carmody of USA in the second round in men’s flyweight was happy to be honoured after five decades for his boxing. He finished 9^th in his category at the Tokyo Olympics.

Recalling his past days, Nam Singh said that he used to run about 10km every day with two bricks on his hands. “But these days players seem to take their training not seriously. Boxing is basically a physical game and requires both physical and mental fitness.”

He revealed that he was only 18 years old when he took part in the 18^th summer Olympics. The ex-British Gurkha Army man Singh played several international events for around five years.

Both Ram Prasad and Nam Singh wore the boxing glove at the same time. After three years of training, they departed only to meet once again two years later for the Olympics. They both also retired from the captain in the same year.