Not just a Boxer in the Rink, but a fighter against life
From the footpaths of
Karachi’s Lyari to the Bronze Medal Stand of Seoul Summer Olympics 1988, One of
the features of many Pakistanis is their ability to rise from modest situations
to positions of considerable wealth, usually achieved through hard work and a
determination to succeed. One such person is Syed Hussain Shah, who was born on 14 August, 1964. He started his
life as a homeless child on the streets of Lyari, an impoverished neighbourhood
in Karachi, and used to make his living as a daily wage labourer while sleeping
on a footpath at night. Syed Hussain Shah has had a tiring yet
fulfilling journey burdened with challenges and difficulties. However, all the
childhood hitches and early troubles failed to pull him back from his dreams
and led him to what no other Pakistan could have achieved. He’s not just
a boxer in the rink but a fighter against troubles of life.
He started off as a
homeless laborer in Karachi and sits proudly as a professional boxing trainer
in Tokyo, with Pakistan’s highest civil award Sitara i Imtiaz pinned to his
shoulder and countless medals to his credit for his impeccable realm for a
decade on the international boxing front.
Born on August 14, 1964,
he is a story in himself; an inspiration that reminds us the glory this country
possesses. He was poor, he had little clothes, and sometimes no food at all. He
would sleep at the streets and at times do a job here and labor there to earn
himself a day’s bread.
He dreamt of being a boxer
and fight to win a medal for the country but had little money and no training
to take him there. He would practice on the streets, pick a fight in the nooks
of Lyari, punched against garbage bags in the solitude of nights, and trained
himself into what was soon to become ‘The Syed Hussain Shah’.
Shah made his
international debut at the first South Asian Games in Nepal in 1984. Before he
bagged the gold medal for Pakistan, Shah was unsure if he could even reach the
tournament because he had little money. Having won the first gold, Shah saw no
point of return and went on to winning two more Gold Medals at the second and
third SAF Games held in Dhaka and Calcutta in 1985 and 1987, respectively.
Hussain Shah is the only boxer in the history of Pakistan, and the first from South Asia, to put his country on the Olympics medals table after winning a historic bronze medal at the 1988 Seoul Olympics. Widely considered to be one of the finest boxers ever to emerge from Asia, Shah also has the distinction of winning the prestigious Asian Boxing Championship and multiple SAF Games Gold medals, while on his unbeaten streak at the top of Asian boxing for a decade.
Like any other patriotic Pakistani, Hussain Shah is very concerned and disappointed about the current situation of the boxing sport in Pakistan. He believes, Pakistan has a lot of boxing talent, but is at the mercy of corrupt people.
By now shah knew nothing other than fighting for the country. He knew nothing less than a win. He was fearless and becoming the nightmare of international boxers. In 1987, he claimed another gold medal at the 13th Asian Boxing Championship held in Kuwait.
With 4 gold medals to his credit already, this Lyari-born pugilist
next aimed to win the 1988 Summer Olympics. He performed creditably well and
for the first time in history, Pakistan stood among the top three boxers at the
Summer Olympics with the bronze medal in boxing gleaming with all might around
Shah’s neck.
The government of Pakistan, in recognition of his fine feat in
middleweight boxing conferred on him the prestigious Sitara i Imtiaz in 1989.
Shah, later in 1996 bagged another gold medal for the country at the
president’s cup boxing tournament held in Jakarta.
As of now,
he lives comfortably in Tokyo with his family: a wife and two sons who
represent Pakistan in Judo. Shah professionally trains boxers in Japan. He
often expresses his discontentment over the Pakistan Boxer’s Federation holding
it responsible for the demise of the sport in the country.
Currently living in
Tokyo, Japan, Syed Hussain Shah is
involved training professional boxers. Prior to this, as a senior coach, he had
the opportunity to train boxers in various other countries.
Hussain Shah is one of those sportsmen
who had worked hard for the pride of his country and deserves to be recognised.
Unfortunately, soon after his retirement, he was forgotten by the public and
media alike and his story buried in obscurity.
Over the
years, we may have forgotten his name, but in the most recent tributes being
given to the Olympic prodigy, a Lahore based musician is all set to release his
flick Shah, a
tribute to the man who bought Pakistan medal from the Olympics. Shah is all set
to release on August 14, this year in cinemas across Pakistan.
