THE WONDER GIRLS OF INDIA

WORLD CHAMPION

- GP CAPT ACHCHYUT KUMAR

What more can one want; Nitu Ghanghas (48 kg), Nikhat Zareen (50 kg), Lovlina Borgohain (75 kg) and Saweety Boora (81 kg); four golden girls in a single Women’s World Boxing Championship?

It was 17 years ago in 2006, when it was not only Mary Kom but three other boxers, Laishram Sarita Devi (lightweight; 52 kg), Jenny RL (63 kg) and Lekha Kozhummel Chettadi (75 kg) who won gold medals in their respective weight categories. Our girls are keeping all sports scribes busy as they are being made to rewrite Indian sports’ history almost on a weekly basis. It is not that the boys and the men are not hitting the headlines once in a while, but for the time being, it is the girls and the women who are taking the cake.

However, before we enter the boxing ring there is something more impressive that happened on the tracks. Rezoana Heena Mallik set a new Under-16 national record by completing the 400 metre race in 53.22 seconds at the 4th National 400 m Championship at Thiruvananthapuram. Rezoana not only broke the 11-year-old record of Anjana Thamke, but there is something more interesting to add to the story. Running the same distance in the women’s section, Dandi Jyothika Sri clocked 53.26 seconds. Even the Under-18 timing recorded was slower than Rezoana’s timing.

While New Delhi was witnessing the progress of our female boxers, simultaneously Bhopal was witness to our female shooters winning enough medals at the ISSF Rifle/Pistol World Cup to finish second behind China. However, the golden story of the ring at New Delhi ended with India being adjudged as the best boxing team.