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Indian boxing veteran MC Mary Kom said on Monday that she does not want to retire from the sport and will have her eyes on the Asian Championships.
MC Mary Kom, along with Bollywood actor Farhan Akhtar were revealed to be the brand ambassadors of the upcoming IBA Women's World Boxing Championships, which will take place in Delhi from March 15-26. At the 40-years of age, Mary still has a lot of passion for the sport and has not given up on her focus on Asian Championships. As per the rules of IBA, she cannot take part in the sport after 40. "I know this is heartbreaking. But I want to play further and do not want to give up on my aim of winning the Asian Championships. I want to play further and I hope something changes when that event comes near. Boxing is my life and I cannot give up on this. I am clear to myself that I do not want to retire," said Kom at the event. Kom is not taking part in this tournament as she is recovering from an injury. "I am not completely fit this time. I have to recover and I could not be a part of this championship. But I have a lot of faith in our young blood that they will end up winning gold medals in this championships and they are doing great," added the boxer. Top names from the boxing world, including eight Olympics medallists, will fight for the title at the tournament which India will be hosting for the record third time. The event will also see a massive prize pool of Rs 20 crore. 2020 Tokyo Bronze medallist, Lovlina Borgohain (75 kg) has two World Championships bronze medals to her name so far and will join seven other Olympic medallists boxing for glory in the upcoming Championships.Nikhat Zareen, on the other hand, will defend her title in the 50kg category. She became the world champion in the 2022 IBA Women's World Boxing Championships held in Istanbul, Turkey. Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games gold medallist Nitu Ghanghas will also represent the country in the 48kg category. The two-time Youth World Champion will look to add yet another major medal to her name. Manisha Moun who announced herself on the global stage with impressive performances at the 2018 World Championships in Delhi will be representing the country in the highly competitive 57kg featherweight category. Manisha won the bronze medal at the 2022 World Championships. 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games bronze medallist Jaismine Lamboria has been a quarter-finalist in the 2022 edition and will box in the 60kg category. Young pugilists Preeti and Sanamacha Chanu will represent India in the 54kg and 70 kg categories respectively. Preeti won a bronze medal at the 2022 Asian Championships whereas Sanamcha is the 2021 Youth World Champion and recently became the National Champion in her category. The reigning Asian and national champion Saweety Boora will be competing in the 81kg weight category. The experienced campaigner, who won a silver medal in the 2014 World Championships in South Korea will be eager to continue her impressive form to add to her medal tally. Youth World Champions Sakshi Chaudhary (52kg) and Shashi Chopra (63kg) along with 2019 South Asian Games gold medallist Manju Bamboria (66kg) will be eager to prove their mettle in their respective categories at the World Championships. In the 81kg+ heavyweight category, India's medal hopes will be shouldered by the reigning National Champion Nupur Sheoran. The event will see a total prize pool of Rs 20 crore - Rs 10 crores being the pool for gold medallists. Boxers who finish as runners-up in their categories as well as those who claim bronze will receive their prizes from pools of Rs 5 crores respectively. The Boxing Federation of India (BFI) will be hosting the Women's World Boxing Championships for the third time, most ever by any country since the tournament's inception and a total of 350+ boxers, including the 12 Indians, from 74 countries have registered so far for this biennial event. Indian Squad- Nitu Ghanghas (48kg), Nikhat Zareen (50kg), Sakshi Chaudhary (52kg), Preeti (54kg), Manisha Moun (57kg), Jaismine Lamboria (60kg), Shashi Chopra (63kg), Manju Bamboria (66kg), Sanamcha Chanu (70kg), Lovlina Borgohain (75kg), Saweety Boora (81kg) and Nupur Sheoran (81+kg). (ANI)
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