CHENNAI: She has had a decorated career spanning over two decades and her yearning to perform has remained like the way it was when she stepped inside the ring for the first time.
London Olympic bronze medallist, MC Mary Kom, feels she is still good enough to continue but at the same time felt it was important to give youngsters a chance. “I thought we should give youngsters a chance and I have decided to skip a couple of big tournaments — World Championships and Asian Games,” she told this daily.
The trials for the World Championships and Asian Games are starting from Monday to Wednesday. However, Asiad trials for two weight categories (51kg & 69kg) will be conducted separately from March 11 to 14.
There are multiple reasons for taking the back seat but motivating the NextGen pugilists is one of her primary objectives for now. “I have been playing for so many years and the time has come to give chances to the next bunch of pugilists,” she said. “I just want to motivate them and this should definitely keep them motivated. The World Championships and the Asian Games will be a big challenge for them and I hope they will rise to the occasion.” The world event is scheduled to be held from May 6 to 21 in Istanbul (Turkey) while the Asiad is due to be held from September 10 to 25 in Hangzhou (China). She is keen to get back to business during Commonwealth Games. “I am preparing for the Commonwealth Games and hope to do well.”
Covid, too, had played a role. It has been a long break and she had obstacles during the pandemic. And dengue in December-January 2020-2021, too, was a mighty setback. She had also not played too many tournaments but joined the national camp two weeks ago.
Before joining, she had been training in Imphal. Though she has stepped aside to give youngsters a chance, Mary said she has not thought about retirement yet. “Let me take one step at a time and I have not decided on retirement,” she said. Of course, she wants to give back to the sport post-retirement. But all depends on the sports ministry, Sports Authority of India and Boxing Federation of India. Since she is not growing younger, peaking at the right time and choosing tournaments wisely would be crucial.