Every medal was a struggle: Mary Kom

Mary Kom, a five-time world champion and Olympic bronze- medallist, scripted history today by becoming the first boxer to claim five gold medals at the continental meet in the Vietnamese city of Ho Chi Minh. 

This medal is very special to me just like all other medals I have won because it has its own story of struggles. Every medal I have won is a story of a difficult struggle. I am hoping this medal, which has come after I became an MP, will enhance my reputation even further. I hope my stature grows,” Mary Kom said. 

Besides being an active and top-level boxer, the 35- year-old is a sitting Rajya Sabha MP, whose attendance in the house has never been brought into question, a government observer for boxing in the country and a “very busy” mother to her three sons. 

Add to this, she is also involved in the running of her academy in Imphal, along with her husband Onler Kom.

“I have been an active MP, I am attending Parliament regularly and despite that I trained hard for this championship. Since I am a government observer, I have to be present at meetings related to the running of the sport as well. I hope people realise how tough it is,” she said.

“I have been juggling so many roles. I am a mother too, I have three sons to take care of. I don’t even know how I manage to pull it off sometimes,” she added. 

The diminutive Manipuri has been the face of women’s boxing not just in India but all over the world, earning the nickname ‘Magnificent Mary’ from the International Boxing Association (AIBA) back in 2010.