THE OTHER CHARGERS

ON THEIR DAY, ALL OF THESE INDIAN ATHLETES CAN ADD TO THE LUSTRE OF PARIS WITH THEIR SHOTS, STROKES, TAKEDOWNS AND PUNCHES

- Suhani Singh

LOVLINA BORGOHAIN, 26

Boxing 75kg

Agar sahenge to hi to champion ban payenge (Only if you suffer will you become a champion),” says Lovlina Borgohain in The Dreamers, a short documentary series on JioCinema, which will be streaming the Games. It’s a work ethic Lovlina perhaps inherited from her father, a tea estate worker. Initially trained in martial arts, Lovlina for long was the perennial bronze medallist—including the one won at the Tokyo Olympics—that is until she decided to switch her weight category to 75kg from 69kg post Tokyo. Better results soon followed, beginning with winning gold in the Asian Boxing Championship in 2022 and a world championship title and an Asian Games silver medal last year. Being the only Indian pugilist to be seeded at the Olympics means Lovlina needs just two wins to confirm another bronze. Though, going by the three-time world championship medalist’s pre-Paris talk, she wants a change of colour. A shinier hue of yellow.

AVINASH SABLE, 29

Steeplechase 3,000m