Magnificent Mary

Six-Time World Championship Gold Medalist, and Olympic Bronze Medalist, Padma Vibhushan, Arjuna Award recipient, boxer Mary Kom, was born today, in 1983.

Mary Kom; Source: Public Domain

Mangte Chungneijang Mary Kom, the iconic boxer of Olympic fame, was born today on the first of March, 1983. Hailing from rural Manipur, her family was poor, her parents were tenant farmers, and her early childhood was spent helping them, and receiving her education in various Christian schools till class VIII.

At that time, the boxer Dingko Singh, a fellow Manipuri, had just returned from the 1998 Bangkok Asian Games, winning a gold medal in boxing. His win inspired a wave of Manipuris to take to trying boxing as a sport, and Mary was not far behind. She was already excelling in athletics at her educational institutions, but now she made a shift to boxing.

In Imphal, where she went after leaving school, she learned boxing under the State boxing coaches at the Sports Academy. Keeping her training a secret from her father, who only found out after she had won the state championship in 2000, she finally earned his approval too.

After her marriage, her career as a master boxer began - and medal after medal began to pour.

From AIBA World Boxing Championship gold medals, which she won 6 times, to Asian Cups and Championships, to the 2010 Asian Games, where she competed in the 51kg class and won bronze, her career went above and beyond inspiring for the populace.

While she held the Queen’s Baton during the 2011 Commonwealth Games of Delhi, she could only compete in it by 2018, as a women’s boxing category did not exist yet. Once it did, she had no difficulty in clinching gold.

Her biggest test, and greatest achievement, came during the 2012 London Olympic Games. Winning the Bronze Medal, her win was one of India’s 6 total medals earned at the overall London Olympics. She has won uncountable awards, including the Padma Vibhushan, the Khel Ratna, the Arjuna Award, along with many sports titles. Movies and documentaries have been made about her, and she has written an autobiography, Unbreakable, as well. She continues to train for the next Olympics and continues to inspire more like her, to the arena.