Six-time world champion MC Mary Kom has voiced her dissatisfaction with the performance of Indian boxers at the Paris 2024 Olympics, emphasizing the emotional weight of competing on such a grand stage.
As a seasoned medallist herself, she reflected on the disappointment that follows when expectations fall short.
The Indian boxing contingent at the Paris Olympics comprised six athletes; two men and four women.
Among them were notable competitors such as Lovlina Borgohain, who secured a bronze at the Tokyo Games, and World Champion Nikhat Zareen.
“Looking at the Olympics performance, its unfortunate that we didn’t win a medal in the 2024 Olympics. We will assess what needs doing moving forward and what should not done,” Mary Kom stated during her participation at the Army Sports Conclave, speaking to IANS.
Lovlina, competing in the women’s 75kg category, narrowly missed out on a second Olympic medal, exiting in the quarterfinals against China’s Li Qian.
Nishant Dev, who represented India in the men’s 71kg division, also reached the quarterfinals but faced defeat against Mexico’s Marco Verde.
The journey for two-time world champion Nikhat Zareen (Women’s 50kg), reigning Commonwealth champion Amit Panghal (Men’s 51kg), and Preeti Pawar (Women’s 54kg), cut short in the round of 16 in their respective events.
Meanwhile, Jaismine Lamboria (Women’s 57kg) was eliminated in the round of 32.
“As a world champion and medallist myself, its natural to feel disappointed. We’ll focus on more practice and hard work for the upcoming tournaments,” Mary Kom added, underscoring her commitment to enhancing the performance of the boxing team.
Mary Kom joins the ranks of Indian boxing legends, including Vijender Singh, who won a bronze at the Beijing 2008 Olympics, and Lovlina, who claimed bronze at the Tokyo 2020 Games.
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