New Delhi: Indian boxing legend Mary Kom is keen to reproduce the form (that won her five world titles in the 46-48 kg category between 2002 and 2010) in the Asian Games scheduled to start from September 19 in Incheon, South Korea.
Kom’s glory faded after she lost to Britain's Nicola Adams in the semifinals of London Olympics 2012. She was left with a bronze in a sport she once dominated but now, she wants to turn the tide.
The 31-year-old from Manipur – who is recently in news for a Bollywood movie based on her life – is now going to compete in the 51 kg flyweight category.
“I felt I had let the country down. Being part of the Olympics was a dream and there I was standing on the podium. But the Indian anthem was not playing. That hurt badly,” said Kom, who is also a mother of three.
Kom had to settle for the bronze at the Asian Games in Guangzhou after losing to home favourite Ren Cancan in the semifinals. It was the second time in two years that she had been relegated to third place. Since then, Kom devoted more time to family and also gave birth to her third son in May in 2013.
There were fears that Kom was past her prime after she failed to qualify for the Commonwealth Games this year. She lost to Pinkya Jangra – a younger opponent – in the trials.But Kom, (nicknamed Magnificent Mary) answered her critics beating Jangra to book her ticket to Incheon.
"One thing I don't do is give up, I love to fight against the odds. It's nothing new. I have been doing it all my life,” she added.
Kom, who named her autobiography “Unbreakable”, has come a long way since growing up as the child of an uneducated labourer in a Manipur village, constantly being told not to take up boxing because it could ruin her looks. She tried her hand at track and field before settling for boxing, inspired by the gold-medal winning feat of a fellow Manipuri, Dingko Singh, at the 1998 Asian Games in Bangkok. Her other childhood idols included the legendary Muhammad Ali and his daughter Laila.
“I realised women's boxing was a serious sport even if it was not taken seriously in India," she said. Kom won the country's highest sporting award, the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna, in 2009 followed by the third highest civilian award, the Padma Bhushan, in 2013.
To ensure the hardships she faced as a young boxer did not discourage others, she started the Mary Kom Boxing Academy in Manipur's capital Imphal which provides free training to underprivileged children.
Kom said she was amused and taken by surprise when a Bollywood producer approached her about the movie.
“I did not think my life was so interesting. I just hope the film inspires young people to take up sports. Not just boxing, but any sport,” she said adding she was disappointed the film would not be screened in Manipur because separatist rebels threaten violent reprisals against theatre-owners who show Hindi films.
