Manipuri boxers want to emulate Mary Kom

By Paritosh Pramanik

THEY work in farms, helping their families whenever they get a chance to visit home. But when inside the ring, these girls from Manipur throw powerful punches and want to emulate MC Mary Kom.
Over a dozen girl boxers from Manipur are in the city to participate in the first sub-junior national boxing championship organised by Mahanagar Boxing Association under the aegis of Maharashtra Boxing Association and Boxing Federation of India at Rani Kothi, Civil Lines.
The Under-14 pugilists from Manipur are fast in throwing their punches. They all want to don India colours and win medals for the country like their very own Mary Kom, the five-time world champion and Olympic bronze medallist.
Y Venika Chanu, the 13-year-old from Mary Kom Boxing Academy, wants to be like the Indian boxing legend.
“I love boxing. I want to be like Mary Kom. I want to fight hard and win medals for my State in this nationals,” she said through translator KSH Sarat Singh, her team manager.
Venika joined Mary Kom Academy last year and has developed skills learning the nuances of the game. She might look a delicate north-eastern girl with her free-flowing hair, but inside the ring Venika is ruthless. “She is very strong. Her punches, if landed on the right place, would win her bouts in seconds,” said her coach Shyam Chandra, who trains these girls at National Sports Academy in Imphal.
Like Venika, E Thoi Thoi Chanu also belongs to Mary Kom Academy. The well-built 14-year-old is participating in the 52 cvkg category.
Thoi Thoi’s family depends on farming. Both her parents work on rice fields to earn their livelihood. “Whenever I am at my home I help my parents in farming. They work hard only to see me achieve success,” said Thoi Thoi, again through a translator.
Both the pugilists get appreciation and tips from Mary Kom herself whenever she is in Manipur.
“Whenever didi visits academy she spends a lot of time with us. She motivates us and tells us to keep concentrating on practice,” Venika and Thoi Thoi said.
Though Mary Kom’s success at international level can be attributed to the promotion of boxing in Manipur, it was Dingko Singh who sowed the seed in the north-eastern State.
“Dingko Singh won gold at Bangkok Asian Games in 1998 and that ignited a passion about boxing among the Manipuris.
“His medal winning achievement opened the boxing doors in our State,” said coach Shyam Chandra.
But the interest among the girls and their family members grew after Mary Kom and Sarita Devi’s success.
“Parents are now willingly sending their kids to learn and take up boxing as a career. It all started with the success of Sarita Devi and Mary Kom. These two boxers changed the perception of families towards their lasses taking boxing,” said KSH Sarat Singh, who is also the joint secretary of Manipur Amateur Boxing Association.
“Even Sarita Devi is a big influence in our State. Players from her academy are also doing well and are State champions. We have Ethoiba Chanu Wangjam and Th  Kunjarani Devi, both of 14 years participating in this meet. They are our medal hopes,” added Singh.
Manipur is expecting at least five medals from this sub-junior competition. 
“We are taking part from 34 to 60 weight categories and are expecting to return home with at least five gold medals,” Singh 
concluded.