Col R D Singh (Retd)
As a veteran soldier, I see in Mary Com all those qualities which I witnessed in those soldiers who captured the Tiger hill. Be it aggression, fighting spirit, stamina, or the will to bring honour to the country – it is all there in this gutsy lady.
5′ 2”, 31 years old pugilist, hailing from a poor family in a remote village in the insurgency infested Manipur, MC Mary Com has proved to the nation that a woman can achieve the impossible. Bronze in the last Olympics, and now the first Indian woman to win a gold in boxing at the Asian games, she has caught the imagination of not only the Indian people but the world. What has she proved, and how does she stand apart from others?
Foremost, she is a determined fighter who refuses to look back. Mary never gave up even after motherhood, or got bogged down by the household chores. In a career of 14 years, with no big sponsors, or god fathers with bags of money, as a humble woman, she toiled on her own, and made a mark. Winning world championships five times over, bronze at the Olympics, four Asian titles ( in three different categories), she continued with her pursuit of winning more medals for the country. That is the type of devotion and focus she has towards the game. Her first coach, Ibomcha Singh, under whom she trained at the Khuman Lampak Stadium in Imphal, when she began her boxing career in 2000, says “ For a woman who has surmounted so many challenges in life, nothing is impossible. She is an attacking boxer and will never hold back”. No wonder, when she was fighting Kazakistan’s Zhaina Shekerbekova, in the finals on 01 October at Incheon, Mary attacked her like a tigress, undaunted by her short height or slight frame. Like a champion, she beat her securing the gold for the jubilant nation.
Once on the ring, she is a transformed woman. When she boxes, you can not take your eyes off her as she just doesn’t let her opponent rest or think. A power house of stamina and strength, highly agile with sound technique, Mary fights like a soldier, capturing an objective. Mary Com who had won earlier championships in her natural weight ( 46 – 48), had to increase her weight to fight in the fly weight category ( 48 – 51). It was not easy for her to put on weight, but she did it. Once 46- 48 category is allowed in the Olympics, she will do even better because that is her natural weight. Her English coach Charlers Atiknson echoes Mary’s confidence.
I feel Mary Com has emerged as a new face of rural women, manifesting women power, in all spheres. That is true emancipation. Imagine a girl, who used to till her fields, and look after her brothers and sisters till 2000, winning a medal in the Olympics, and now a gold at the Asian games in boxing, which was so far a male bastion. Mary had to face stiff opposition from the villagers who sneered at her for choosing boxing as a vocation. But she stood her ground, and pursued her love with audacity and determination. Her husband and family stood by her. She sacrificed her family life, staying away from even her young twin sons, to train hard for the Olympics. Didn’t we see all this in a recent film made on her, ‘ Mary Kom’, her role convincingly played by Priyanka Chopra? PC must be so proud today to have played that life time role.
Mary Kom will not rest on her laurels. We are certain, that this well deserved Asian gold, will only make her resolve even stronger, to win a gold in the next Olympics. Mary Com has done us all proud.
Salute to her, and the new woman power.
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