Beijing glory a big boost for women boxers

Guwahati, Sep.28 : The recent success of Indian boxers at the Beijing Olympics besides bringing glory to the game in India, has made more pugilists take to the sport, especially in the north east.

Success of the men's team has motivated these women boxers to look forward to a good future.

Gearing up for an upcoming boxing tournament, about 40 female boxers from across the nation, are attending a week-long camp in Guwahati.

These players are training for their selection to the Indian Team, which is scheduled to participate in the Witch International Cup at Hungary, Asian Boxing at Guwahati and World Sports at China in November 2008.

Though Women's Boxing was not included in the recently held Olympics, the participants are hopeful that the boxing by the fair sex would be included in the London Olympics.

Felicitated by the Assam boxing association, these women have been medal winners in different categories in Hungary.

Anup Kumar, the boxing Head Coach, said: "They are very much motivated by the Olympic (2008) result. We were the world number one in 2005 Asian Championship, now we are trying to repeat that. Women's Boxing is likely to be included in London Olympics, which would enable us win two gold medals in the tournament."

The present squad includes some big names in the world of Women's Boxing. Former World Number one M.C Marykom is one among them.

The 26-year-old boxer from Manipur, who has made her mark in the world-boxing arena, hails from the militancy prone state of Manipur. However the uncertainties in her state have not affected her performance. She is all praise for the government for paying attention to Women's Boxing.

Marykom, former World number 1 boxer, said: "After seeing a wonderful performance by the Men team in the Olympic (2008), they won a bronze medal. Since then it's good to see that the Indian Government is promoting Women's Boxing. We expect that more facilities will be provided to us in future. Women's boxing has been included in Commonwealth games also; it's a great feeling." By Peter Alex Todd

ANI