Living legend

K DATTA

Mary Kom after winning the Asian Boxing Championships final By winning the 48kg category gold medal in the Asian women's boxing championships for a record fifth time Mary Kom confirmed, if confirmation was at all needed, her place in Indian sports history as a living legend. The lady from Manipur, a 34- year-old mother of three boys, did so by scoring a unanimous decision over a North Korean opponent Kim Hyang-mi in the title bout at Ho Chi Minh City. The taller and stronger-looking North Korean appeared threateningly aggressive as the fight began only to be tamed as the contest progressed. In boxing, as in some other games, skill and experience count for a lot, two attributes in which Mary Kom was superior than her younger opponent.
If there were any doubts about the Manipuri's fitness in the weeks and months before the Ho Chi Minh championships, they were dispelled by the gold medal that she brought back from the Vietnamese capital. In addition to the Mary Kom's gold, the Indian contingent won six more medals which included a silver and five bronze.
"I am really happy the way this Championship has panned out. I would like to dedicate this victory to all those who have supported me even though the world had written me off. I would like to thank my coaching staff who worked hard with me over the last few months," an elated Mary Kom said after her win.
"A special word for the professional set-up that BFI has put in place, ensuring the best facilities were given during the month-long training camp and … the faith the BFI president Mr. Ajay Singh for showing in me," she added.
In a deserving tribute to Mary Kom's feat at Ho Chi Minh City, BFI president Ajay Singh "Mary Kom's gold at the Asian Boxing Championship is a huge victory for India's woman-power. At 34, this mother of three has shown that, with grit and determination, you can overcome seemingly insurmountable odds. Mary Kom is a huge inspiration for all. India proud of her victory."
Far from resting on her laurels, Mary Kom's latest addition to her collection of gold medals has whetted her appetite for more honours in the ring. Her next target is a gold in the 2018 Commonwealth Games.and Asian Games. Then, finally, the 2020 Olympics. That's for the future. For all the glory she achieved at Ho Chi Manh City Mary Kom, who is a member of the Rajya Sabha, deserves a standing ovation when Parliament meets for its winter session.
They say that behind every man there is a woman. But in Mary's case, one will not be wrong to say that behind every woman achiever there is a man. Onler Kom is the name of that man.

Afghans' new craze

Strange things happened in the game of cricket last month. If Nepal's victory over India in the under-19 Asia cup at Kuala Lumpur was bizarre, Afghanistan winning the tournament by overwhelming Pakistan by 189 runs in the final was out of the world.
People back home in Kabul must have come out in the streets and fired their guns in celebration and given their youth cricketers a hero's welcome on their return. No people are known to more passionate a b o u t victory than t h e Afghans.
Cricket is their new craze and their youth team's victory in the Malaysian capital will add to the growing popularity of the game in Afghanistan. Even the Taliban and other warring parties, will, one hopefully wishes, have no objection if that happens.
Afghans first learnt the game in the refugee camps in Pakistan a few decades ago. Now their trouble-torn country has been inducted as a full member of the International Cricket Conference (ICC) in
acknowledgment of the rapid strides it has made in the game. The other full ICC members are traditional cricket-playing nations: England, Australia, Bangladesh, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan, the West Indies, India, Ireland, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.



		EDITOR'S MAIL MATTERS OF PUBLIC POLICY GUJARAT ASSEMBLY POLL A POLITICAL ESSAY MOODY'S DOSE UGLY CONTROVERSY REALPOLITIK BENGAL POLITICS STATE BUREAUCRACY BHOPAL DIARY TAMIL NADU DOWN MEMORY LANE RARE MUNITIONS CHANDIGARH DIARY SIGNS OF THE TIMES FRANKLY SPEAKING REVIVAL OF PACT HIGHER EDUCATION POWER POLITICS GREETS THEM ! HITS & MISSES SPORTS PAGES FROM HISTORY BOOK BAZAAR BOOK BAZAAR FILM MAKING A WOMAN'S JOURNEY INTERVIEW YOGA IN DAILY LIFE TRIBUTE ART OF LIVING Issue:Dec' 2017 Subscribe Now	HITS & MISSES Living legend K DATTA Mary Kom after winning the Asian Boxing Championships final By winning the 48kg category gold medal in the Asian women's boxing championships for a record fifth time Mary Kom confirmed, if confirmation was at all needed, her place in Indian sports history as a living legend. The lady from Manipur, a 34- year-old mother of three boys, did so by scoring a unanimous decision over a North Korean opponent Kim Hyang-mi in the title bout at Ho Chi Minh City. The taller and stronger-looking North Korean appeared threateningly aggressive as the fight began only to be tamed as the contest progressed. In boxing, as in some other games, skill and experience count for a lot, two attributes in which Mary Kom was superior than her younger opponent. If there were any doubts about the Manipuri's fitness in the weeks and months before the Ho Chi Minh championships, they were dispelled by the gold medal that she brought back from the Vietnamese capital. In addition to the Mary Kom's gold, the Indian contingent won six more medals which included a silver and five bronze. "I am really happy the way this Championship has panned out. I would like to dedicate this victory to all those who have supported me even though the world had written me off. I would like to thank my coaching staff who worked hard with me over the last few months," an elated Mary Kom said after her win. "A special word for the professional set-up that BFI has put in place, ensuring the best facilities were given during the month-long training camp and … the faith the BFI president Mr. Ajay Singh for showing in me," she added. In a deserving tribute to Mary Kom's feat at Ho Chi Minh City, BFI president Ajay Singh "Mary Kom's gold at the Asian Boxing Championship is a huge victory for India's woman-power. At 34, this mother of three has shown that, with grit and determination, you can overcome seemingly insurmountable odds. Mary Kom is a huge inspiration for all. India proud of her victory." Far from resting on her laurels, Mary Kom's latest addition to her collection of gold medals has whetted her appetite for more honours in the ring. Her next target is a gold in the 2018 Commonwealth Games.and Asian Games. Then, finally, the 2020 Olympics. That's for the future. For all the glory she achieved at Ho Chi Manh City Mary Kom, who is a member of the Rajya Sabha, deserves a standing ovation when Parliament meets for its winter session. They say that behind every man there is a woman. But in Mary's case, one will not be wrong to say that behind every woman achiever there is a man. Onler Kom is the name of that man. Afghans' new craze Strange things happened in the game of cricket last month. If Nepal's victory over India in the under-19 Asia cup at Kuala Lumpur was bizarre, Afghanistan winning the tournament by overwhelming Pakistan by 189 runs in the final was out of the world. People back home in Kabul must have come out in the streets and fired their guns in celebration and given their youth cricketers a hero's welcome on their return. No people are known to more passionate a b o u t victory than t h e Afghans. Cricket is their new craze and their youth team's victory in the Malaysian capital will add to the growing popularity of the game in Afghanistan. Even the Taliban and other warring parties, will, one hopefully wishes, have no objection if that happens. Afghans first learnt the game in the refugee camps in Pakistan a few decades ago. Now their trouble-torn country has been inducted as a full member of the International Cricket Conference (ICC) in acknowledgment of the rapid strides it has made in the game. The other full ICC members are traditional cricket-playing nations: England, Australia, Bangladesh, South Africa, New Zealand, Pakistan, the West Indies, India, Ireland, Sri Lanka and Zimbabwe.