It’s time to party in Gaurav’s hometown

Bijendra Ahlawat

Tribune News Service

Ballabgarh (Faridabad), April 14

Gaurav Solanki, the 21-year-old boxer, is a hero. Hundreds of local residents, including kin and friends of the Solanki family in Ballabgarh, converged on his small house to congratulate the family and join the feast of ‘laddoos’.

“Though the news of Gaurav winning gold in the 52-kg category came around 10:25 am, the celebrations had already begun. We were sure that he was going to win the final bout,” said Vijay Pal Singh (50), his father, an electrician running a shop here.

“We hired a ‘halwai’ on Friday when we got the news of his reaching the final,” he said.

“We came to know about the achievement through social media,” said Saurabh (18), Gaurav’s younger brother.

Saurabh, a budding boxer, had been undergoing training in the 46-49 kg category at a local boxing academy. His elder sister Neelam had been a national-level boxer and champion from 2013 to 2015.

Saurabh said boxing was in their blood and Gaurav’s win was a milestone.