Hyderabad, November 05: A national-level woman boxer from Hyderabad was found dead in her room at the Centre of Excellence, a sports hostel run by the Sports Authority of Andhra Pradesh, here at Lal Bahadur Stadium.
Eighteen-year-old Amaravati was lying on the bed when the coach Omkar Yadav came there around 7 a.m. to find out why she had not turned up for the practice session. She was clad in a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. The coach called in 108 ambulance service to rush her to the hospital. But the doctor of the ambulance service declared her dead.
“The discoloration of her body and the pungent smell emanating from the room suggested she consumed some poison. But we have to thoroughly examine the room and question the hostel-mates to ascertain facts,” Saifabad Inspector M. Sudarshan said. A lot of vomit was found in the room. Amaravati was alone in the room for the past few days as her roommate had gone home.
The victim’s shocked family members charged that “undue pressure mounted on her by the coach to perform better claimed her life”. “She used to tell us that Yadav was frequently scolding her to achieve results. He used to ask her to quit hostel saying she was just enjoying free amenities there,” they cried.
Minister for Sports K. Venkat Reddy said a departmental inquiry into the boxer’s death would be ordered and action initiated if anybody was found guilty. After performing autopsy, the Osmania Medical College forensic doctors reportedly told the police that no injuries were found on her body. They said the victim died of consuming organophosphorous chemical, used in insecticides, which smells like kerosene.
The teenager hailing from Chintalbasthi of Khairatabad was undergoing training in the hostel for the past three years. She defeated some high-ranked boxers but lost in the quarterfinals in the National boxing championship recently held in Jamshedpur. She was supposed to represent the State in the Jharkhand National Games, but the meet was subsequently cancelled.
Her father died a few years ago. Her mother ekes out a living by selling vegetables.
-PTI