Mar

yKom-TheCaseSt
udy

I
ntr
oduct
ion:
-
Mangt eChungnei jangMar y
Kom  (
bor n1Mar ch1983)i s
anI ndian amat eurboxer  
and
i
ncumbent  
Memberof
Par l
iament ,Rajy aSabha.  She
i
st heonl yfemal et o
become  Wor l
dAmat eur
Boxingchampi on forar ecordsi xtimes, theonl yf emal ebox er
tohav ewonamedal i
neachoneoft hef i
rstsev enWor ld
Champi onships,andt heonl ybox er(mal eorf emal e)t owi n
eightWor l
dChampi onshi pmedal s. 
Ni cknamed  Magni fi
cent
Mar y,shei stheonl yIndianfemal eboxert ohav equal i
fiedf or
the 2012SummerOl ympi cs,compet ingi nthef l
y wei ght( 51 kg)
categor yandwi nningabr onz emedal .Shehadal sobeen
rankedast hewor ld'
sNo.1f emal elight -
fl
y weightby  AIBA.  
She
becamet hef i
rstIndianfemal eboxert owi nagol dmedal in
the AsianGamesi n2014  at 
Incheon, Sout hKor eaandi st he
fi
rstIndianf emaleboxert owi ngoldatt he 2018
Commonweal t
hGames.Shei salsot heonl yboxert o
become  AsianAmat eurBox i
ngChampi on forar ecor dsi xtimes.
On25Apr i
l2016,the 
Presi
dentofIndia nominatedKom asa
memberoft he 
RajyaSabha,t
heupperhouseoft he 
Indian
parl
i
ament.InMar ch2017,t
heMi nistr
yofYout hAf f
airsand
Sport
s,GovernmentofIndi
a,appointedMar yKom al ong
wit
h Akhi
lKumar asnati
onalobserversf orboxi
ng.
Af t
erhersixt
hworldti
tl
ein2018, t
heGov er
nmentofMani pur
hasconf er
redonherthet i
tl
e"MeethoiLei
ma" ,l
oosely
transl
atedas gr
eatorexcepti
onall
ady  
i
naf el
ici
tat
ion
ceremonyhel di
nImphal on11December2018.Att hefuncti
on,
thethen Chi
efMinist
erofManipuralsodecl
aredthatthestret
ch
ofr
oadl eadi
ngt
otheNationalGamesv il
lagei
n I
mphalWest
di
stri
ct,
whereKom cur
rentl
yresi
des,woul dbenamedas MC
MaryKom Road.
 Shewasawar dedthe PadmaVibhushan,
I
ndia'
ssecondhi
ghestcivi
li
anaward,in2020.

Mar yKom  isanI ndianOl ympicbox erwhohail

sfrom theNorth
EasternstateofMani pur.MaryKom i sa5-t
imeWor l
dAmat eur
BoxingChampi on, andt heonlywomanbox ert
owi namedal i
n
thesix 
wor ldchampi onships 
apiece.In2012.Marybecame
(andremai ns)theonl yIndi
anwomanboxert oquali
fyfort
he
SummerOl ympi cswhenshecompet edintheLondonOlympics.
Shewentont ocl incht hebronzemedal i
nthe51kgflyweight
category
.

AsofNov ember2018, MaryKom isr ankedast heNo.1boxer

i
nthewomen’ s45-48kgcat egory 
with500poi ntsal
ongwit
h
Russi
a’sPaltcevaEkateri
na.Kom isalsot hefi
rstI
ndi
anwoman
boxert
oear naGol dMedal attheAsianGames( 2014in
I
ncheon,Sout hKorea)andattheCommonweal thGames(2018
GoldCoast,Austral
ia)
.Kom isalsoasamemberoft heRaj
ya
Sabhaafterbeingnomi nat
edbyt hePr esi
dentofIndi
aon26
Apri
l2016.Mar yisanact i
vesupporterofwi l
danimals.

MaryKom’sr
isetot
hetopofwomen’
swor
ldbox
ingi
sany
thi
ng
butast
rai
ght
forwar
done.

Ful
lName Mangt
eChungnei
j
angMar
yKom

Ni
ckName Magni
fi
centMar
y

Spor
tCat
egor
y (
Cur
rent
) 44-
48Kg

Wor
ldRanki
ng 
(Cur
rent
) 1
Age 35(
1Mar
ch1983)

Homet
own I
mphal
,
 Mani
pur

Hei
ght 5f
t2i
n(1.
58m)

Occupat
ion MP,
inI
ndi
a’
sUpperHouse,
Raj
yaSabha

Mar
yKom Bi
ogr
aphy
Mar yKom withherpar ents(Credi
tsI ndiat
oday.i
n)
Mar ywasbor ntoTonpaKom andAkham Kom i nasmal l
vil
lageofKangathei,Mani pur
.Mani purisoneoft hebackwar d
regionsofthesevenNor t
hEast er
nst atesandint hosedays,it
wasast r
if
e-t
ornstate.Mar yKom gr ewi nthemidstofpov ert
y
andf amine.Shehadt hequal i
tyofbei ngresponsiblefrom the
startit
sel
f,asshetookcar eofherthr eeyoungersi bl
ings.Her
parents,whower epeasant sandtoiledi nthefi
eldsofJhum.

Kom wasv erymuchi nt

erest edinpl ay i
ngdi ff
er entsports
duringherschool ingdays.Shest artedof fbypar tici
pati
ngi n
thev ari
ousat hl
eti
ccompet itionsmost lyrelatedt oDiscus
ThrowandShotPut .Howev er ,
shest artedfollowingaf amous
Mani puriboxerDingkoSi nghandsoont ookuppi ckedupt he
boxinggl oves.Howev er,box ingwasat hingt hatherpar ents,
especiall
yherf at
her ,
TonpaKom, despisedt hemost .Their
reason–Boxi ngisamal espor t
.Hef eltmar r
iagewoul dindeed
reduceMar y’
schancesoff indinganabl egroom.Thei r
onywas
Tonpawashi mselfanex- spor t
sper son.Heusedt oplay
wrest l
i
ngdur inghisheyday sbef orer esorti
ngt of armingduet o
economi ccondi t
ions.

Howev er
,al
ltheresi
stancesmadeMar yst
rongerandmor e
resi
l
ientbytheday,t
hequalit
iesofut
mostimportanceforany
boxer.Byfi
ghti
ngagainstal
lodds,Marypr
ovedthatboxing
wasi
ndeedi
nherbl
ood.

Toaggr avat
eherproblems,
Kom didnotrecei
vepropergear
s
tosust ainhert
raini
ng.Asaresul
t,shewouldoft
enindul
gein
professionalst
reetfi
ghti
ngamongot hermeans,t
osupporther
tr
aining.

Noat t
emptsfrom herpar
entsorchal
l
engingcir
cumstances
wereenoughtokeepMar yawayf r
om herpassi
onever
succeeded.MaryKom Prevai
led.

I
nit
ialSuccess
Herfi
rstcoachwas K.KosanaMeitei,whotaughtherthe
basi
csofboxing. 
In1998,a15-y
ear-ol
dMar yKom madeanal l-
i
mportantdecisi
onthatwouldchangeherl i
feforev
er.She
deci
dedt omov et
othe Spor
tsAcademyi nthestat
ecapit
al
I
mphal .Ther
e,MarywouldmeetNar ji
tSingh,thestat
ecoach,
whowoul dhaveabigimpactonhercar eer.

I
ntheirfi
rsti
nteract
ionitself
,Singhsensedtheburni
ngdesir
ein
Kom anddecidedt otakeherunderhi saegi
s.Healmost
i
nst
ant l
yknewt hatMar yheldthekindofboxingpotent
ial
to
maket hewholecount r
ypr oudofher.

Soon,Kom part
ici
pat
edattheStat
eBoxi ngChampionshi
ps,
whereshewont hegoldmedal
.Thenex tday,
itwasthe
momentwhenTonpasawhi sdaughter
’simageinalocal
newspaperthathedeci
dedtofi
nall
ysupporther.Wit
hhersi
re’
s
supportnowwithher,
Marysetouttoconquertheworld.

I
fov er
comingfami
lyr
esist
ancewashard,t
heglori
ousr
oadto
theLondonGameswashar der
.But
,astheysay
, “
Whenthe
goingget
stough,t
hetoughgetgoi
ng.
”
 Ear
lyLi
fe
Kom wasbor ninKangat hei
vil
lage, MoirangLamkhai i
n
Chur achandpurdi stri
ctof
rural 
Mani pur i
nIndia. 
She
camef rom apoorf ami l
y.Her
parent s,Mangt eTonpaKom andMangt eAkham Kom
wer e tenantfarmer s 
whowor kedi n jhum  f
iel
ds. Theynamed
herChungnei j
ang.Kom gr ewupi nhumbl esur r
oundings,
helpingherpar entswithfarmr elatedchor es,goingtoschool
andl ear ni
ngat hlet
icsini
ti
all
yandl aterboxi ngsimul taneousl
y.
Kom' sf atherwasakeenwr estlerinhi sy oungerday s.Shewas
theel destoft hreechil
dren–shehasay oungersisterand
brother .
 Shehai l
sfrom a Chri
st i
an  Baptist 
fami l
y.
Kom st udiedatt heLoktakChr isti
anModel HighSchool
at 
Moi r
ang  upt ohersixthstandar dandt hereafterat t
endedSt .
XavierCat holicSchool,Moirang, upt oclassVI II.Duringt hi
s
ti
me, shet ookagoodamountofi nterestinathletics,
especi all
y  
javeli
n and 
400met resr unning.Itwasatt hi s
j
unct ure, DingkoSi ngh,afell
owMani purireturnedf rom the
1998  BangkokAsi angames wi thagol dmedal .Kom r ecoll
ects
thatthishadi nspiredmanyy oungst ersinMani purtot rybox i
ng,
andshet oot houghtofgivingitat ry.
AfterstandardVI I
I,Kom mov edtoAdimjatiHi
ghSchool,
 I
mphal
,
forherschool i
ngf orclassIXandX, butwasunablet
opassthe
mat r
iculat
ionex am.Notwi shingtoreappearfort
hem,shequi
t
herschool andgav eherexami nati
onf r
om NIOS,I
mphaland
graduationfrom Chur achandpurColl
ege.
I
nschool ,Kom par ti
cipatedinall
t y
pesofspor t
sincl
uding
voll
eybal
l,footballandat hl
eti
cs.Itwasthesuccessof  
Dingko
Singh 
thatinspiredhert oswitchfrom at
hleti
cstobox i
ngin
2000.Shest artedhert r
ainingunderherfir
stcoachK.Kosana
Meiteii
nImphal .Whenshewas15, shetookthedecisi
ont o
l
eav eherhomet owntost udyattheSportsAcademyi nt he
statecapi talI
mphal . 
Inani ntervi
ewwitht heBBC, Mei tei
remember edherasadedi catedhardwor kinggirl
wi thast r
ong
willpower ,whopi ckedupt hebasicsofboxi ngqui ckly.
Ther eaftershetrainedundert heManipurSt ateBox ingCoach
M.Nar ji
tSingh,atKhumanLampak, I
mphal .
 Kom kepther
i
nt er
esti nboxingasecr etfrom herfat
her ,himselfanex -
wrest ler
,ashewasconcer nedt hatboxingwoul dhur tKom' s
faceandspoi lherchancesofmar ri
age.Howev er
, hel earntofi t
whenKom' sphotoappear edi nanewspaperaf t
ershewont he
stateboxi ngchampi onshipin2000.Af t
ert hreeyear s,herfat her
begant osupportKom' spur suit
sinboxingashegr ew
conv incedofherl oveofboxi ng.

Car
eer
Afterhermar ri
age, Mar y
Kom t ookashor thiatus
fr
om box ing.Aftershe
andOnl erhadt heirfi
rst
twochi l
dren,Kom agai n
start
edt r
aining. 
Shewon
asilvermedal atthe2008
AsianWomen' sBox ing
Champi onshipinIndi aand
afourthsuccessivegoldmedalatt
he  AIBAWomen' sWor l
d
BoxingChampi onship 
i
nChina,
 f
oll
owedbyagol dmedal at
the 
2009AsianI ndoorGames i
nVietnam.
In2010, Kom wont hegol dmedal attheAsianWomen' sBox i
ng
Champi onshi pinKazakhst an,
 andatthe AIBAWomen' sWor l
d
BoxingChampi onshi p i
nBarbados,herfif
thconsecuti
vegoldat
thechampi onship.Shecompet edinBarbadosinthe48 kg
weightcat egory,afterAIBAhadst oppedusi ngt
he46 kg
class.
 I
nt he 2010Asi anGames, shecompet edi
nt he51 kg
classandwonabr onzemedal . 
In2011,shewongol dinthe
48 kgclassatt heAsi anWomen' sCupinChi na.
On3Oct ober2010, she,alongwith 
Sanjay andHar shi
tJai
n,had
thehonourofbear i
ngt he Queen'
sBaton inits 
opening
ceremony 
runint hestadium fort
he 2010Commonweal th
[
38]
Games ofDelhi
.  Shedi dnotcompet e,howev er
,aswomen' s
boxingwasnotincl udedintheCommonweal thGames.
On1October2014,shewonherfi
rstGoldMedal atthe 
Asian
games 
hel
dat I
ncheon, 
Sout
hKorea bybeati
ng Kazakhst
an’s
Zhai
naSheker
bekovainthefl
ywei
ght(51 kg)summi tcl
ash.
On8Nov ember2017,shecl
inchedanunprecedentedf
if
thgol
d
medal(
48 kg)att
heASBCAsi anConfederat
ionwomen's
box
ingchampionshi
psheldat HoChiMinh i
n Vi
etnam.
Theonl ymajorinternati
onalevent,t
hatshehadnotseena
medal beforewasi n Commonweal t
hGames, asher
category 
Lightfly
wei ght
 wasnev eri
ncludedinthegames
ti
ll
 2018Commonweal thGames  whereasex pectedsheear
ned
thegoldmedal graceful
lyi
nthe Women' sli
ghtflywei
ght48
kg on14Apr il2018.
On24November2018,shecr
eatedhist
orybybecomi ngthef
ir
st
womantowin6WorldChampionships,
achi
evingthisfeatat
t
he10t
h AI
BAWomen' sWorldBoxingChampionships hel
din
NewDel
hi,I
ndi
a.
I
nOct ober2019,
 Int
ernati
onalOl
ympicCommitt
ee (
IOC)named
herasaf emalerepresent
ati
veofboxi
ng'
sat
hleteambassador
s
groupforthe2020 TokyoOlympi
cGames.

Ol
ympi
cGames
Kom, whohad
previ
ouslyf
oughti n
the46and48  kg
categori
es,
shiftedto
the51 kgcategory
aft
ert
heworl
dbodydecidedtoall
owwomen'sboxingi
nonly
thr
eewei
ghtcat
egor
ieseli
minat
ingthel
owerweightcl
asses.
Atthe 
2012AI BAWomen' sWorldBox ingChampi onship,Kom
wascompet ingnotj ustf
ort hechampi onshipitselfbutalsofor
aplaceatthe 2012SummerOl ympics inLondon, thefirstt
ime
women'sbox inghadf eaturedasanOl ympicspor t.Shewas
defeat
edinthe51  kgsemi -fi
nal
sby  
Ni col
aAdams  oft
heUK,
butdidsucceedinget ti
ngabr onzemedal .Shewast heonly
I
ndianwomant oqual i
fyforboxingev ent,wit
h Laishram Sarit
a
Devi 
narr
owlymi ssingapl aceinthe60  kgclass.
Kom wasaccompani edt oLondonbyhermot her .
 Kom' scoach
Char l
esAt kinsoncoul dnotj oinheratt heOl ympi cVi l
lageashe
didn'tpossessanI nt
er nati
onal BoxingAssoci at ion( AIBA)3
StarCer ti
fi
cation,whichi smandat oryf oraccr edi t
at i
on.  
She
hadal lherluggageandpasspor tstolenont hewayt ot he
selectioncampi nBangkok, Thailandf orherf irstAsi an
Women' sBox ingChampi onships.  
Thef i
rstOlympi cr oundwas
heldon5August2012, wit
hKom def eating Karol i
na
Mi chalczuk ofPoland19–14i nthet hirdwomen' sbox ingmat ch
evert obef oughtatt heOl ympi cs. 
Int hequar ter-final,the
followingday ,shedef eated Mar ouaRahal i 
of 
Tuni sia wit ha
scor eof15–6.  Shefaced  NicolaAdams  ofUKi nt hesemi -f
inal
on8August2012andl ostthebout6poi ntsto11.  Howev er,
shest oodt hir
di nthecompet it
ionandgar neredanOl ympi c
bronzemedal . 
Inrecogni t
ion,theMani purGov er nmentawar ded
herRs50l akhsandt woacr esofl andi nacabi netmeet inghel d
on9August2012.
Thoughkeenonrepresent
ingIndiaatthe 
2016RioOlympi
cs,
Kom wasnotabletoquali
fyfortheevent.Sheconti
nuest
o
pursuet
hesportandtrai
nforthesame, andisprepar
ingf
or
the 
2020TokyoOlympics.
MaryKom i
s,wi
thoutdoubt,oneofthemostf asci
nating
at
hlet
esontheplanet
.It
’snowondert hatshehasalreadyhad
afeat
uref
il
m madeaboutherl if
e:Kom’sstoryisremarkable.
Borni
napoorregionofIndi
a,itl
ookedlikel
ythatshewoul dend
upwor
kingt
hel
andwi
thherf
ami
l
y.
But–ov ercomingtheobject
ionsfrom herf
amil
y–shemov ed
tothecit
y,becameabox erafterpersuadi
ngalocal
coachto
takeheron, andworkedherwayupt obecomingachampion

 
Anor di
narygirlf
rom t he Kom tribe ofMani
  pur ,
 India who
fearl
esslypursuedherdr eamswi thoutbot heringaboutt hebars
andpr ovedthewor l
dt hatnothingi sbiggert hant hedesi ret
o
win,bybeingt he 
firstIndianfemal eboxer  
toear n
an Olympic medal forhernat i
on.Thi ssixtimes  Wor ldAmat eur
BoxingChampi on hadnumer ousf ace-of f
swhi l
echasi ngher
dreams, butthebestpar twast hatshenev erqui tfighting
againsttheoddswhi chal soincludedherf ami l
ywhonev er
want edhertobecomeabox er.Mar y’
ssuccessf ulcareer
provedthat "
champi onsar enotbor n,theyar emade" .

Chungnei j
angMer yKom Hmangt e 
wasbor non  1st Mar
ch
1983  astheeldestdaught erofa tenantfar
mer  whowor kedin
‘
Jhum’ fi
eldstomeetbot hends.Shespentherchi l
dhood
helpingpar ent
swi thfarm andhousehol dchoresal ongwithher
studies.Mar yinheri
tedspor tsmanshipfrom herfat herwho
usedt opr acti
cewr estl
i
ngi nhisyouth.Sheur gedt obecomea
box erafterwatchingherfellowstatesman DingkoSi ngh who
bagged  goldmedal  f
orIndiaatthe AsianGames.
 

Thepat hwasnoteasyf orherast hecommuni tyaswel lasher

par entsobj ectedt hedecisi
ont opursuebox ingconsi deri
ngt he
spor tonl yforboy s.Maryst ar
tedt rainingi n Imphal  andusedt o
travel distancestol ear
nboxi ngundert het utelageof  CoachK.
KosanaMei tei
.Att heageof15, shel eftherhomet ownf or
furtherst udiesin Imphal 
andcont inuedhert rainingthere.
In 2000, Marywont he 
stateboxi ngchampi onshi p,andi twas
thenherpar entsknewabouthert raining.Initiall
y, t
hey
prot estedbutwat chingherpr olif
icper formanceandi nnate
talent,theyagr eed.Mar ydomi natedt hebox ingr ingforsev eral
year s,butaf terhermar ri
age,shet ookabr eakf rom thespor t
beingmuchengr ossedinf ami l
yandr aisinghert wochi l
dren.
Sooni tstartedairingthatshemi ghtnotcomebackt ot hering
butMar yknewt hatherchasef oranOl ympi cmedal wouldnot
endupl i
ket hat.

Shemadeady nami ccomeback, winninga sil

vermedal  at
the Asi
anWomen’ sBoxi ngChampi onship i
n 2010  andwenton
toaddmanymor ef eathersinhercappr ov i
ngskept i
csthat
thereisav astdifferencebet weenst eppingbackandqui tti
ng.
Resumi ngtohert rai ni
ngschedul esafterhav i
ngki dswasnotat
alleasy,butthest rongcr avi
ngt oearnan  Olympi c medalfor
thecount r
y,againl edhert owardst hebox i
ngr ing,butthisti
me
harderthanear l
ier.Att he AI
BAWomen' sWor ldBoxi ng
Champi onship of 2012, Mar ypunchedhar dnotonl ytomut e
thecrit
icsbutal sot oqual i
fyforthe Olympics ast hewomen’ s
box i
ngwasi ntroducedt hatyear.

Defeating Kar
olinaMi chal
czuk inthef i
rstroundby19- 14, Mary
steppedaheadf orthequarter-
fi
nalswher eshe
domi nated MarouaRahal i
 of 
Tunisia by15-6,reachingt he
fi
nals.Shenotonl year nedIndi
a’sfirstOlympicmedal (bronze)
i
nf emal eboxingbutal soaddedhernamet otheI ndiansport'
s
hi
stor y
.Mar y’
sdet erminati
ontowi nandmoxi eattitudemakes
hert
heper
fectr
olemodel
fort
hey
ounggener
ati
on.

SuperFi
ghtLeague
Kom appear edont hefi
nal
episodeoft he  SuperFight
League' s 
mi xedmar t
ial
art
s realit
yshow–SFL
Challengers.Dur i
ngthisti
me
Kom wasint
alkswit
howner
s Raj
Kundr a and Sanj ayDutt 
to
wor
kwi t
htheSFLinsomemannerothert hanbei ngaf i
ghter
.
On24September2012,t
heSuperFi
ghtLeagueannouncedt
hat
Kom wi
l
lserveastheSFL'
sbrandambassador
.

Achi
evement
s
 I
nter
nat
ionalTi
tl
es [
61]

YearPl
ace Wei
ght Compet
it
ion Locat
ion

AI
BAWomen'sWorld Scr
ant
on,
 
Pennsy
lvani
a,
2001 48
Champi
onshi
ps USA

AI
BAWomen'sWorld
2002 45 Ant
aly
a,Tur
key
Champi
onshi
ps

2002 45 Wi
tchCup Pécs,
Hungar
y

Asi
anWomen's
2003 46 Hi
sar
,Indi
a
Champi
onshi
ps

2004 41 Women'
sWor
ldCup Tønsber
g,Nor
way

Asi
anWomen's
2005 46 Kaohsi
ung,
Tai
wan
Champi
onshi
ps

AI
BAWomen'sWorld
2005 46 Podol
sk,
Russi
a
Champi
onshi
ps

AI
BAWomen'sWorld
2006 46 NewDel
hi,
Indi
a
Champi
onshi
ps

VenusWomen'
sBox
2006 46 Vej
l
e,Denmar
k
Cup

AI
BAWomen'sWorld
2008 46 Ni
ngbo,
Chi
na
Champi
onshi
ps
 Asi
anWomen's
2008 46 Guwahat
i,I
ndi
a
Champi
onshi
ps

2009 46 Asi
anI
ndoorGames Hanoi
,Vi
etnam

AI
BAWomen'sWorld
2010 48 Br
idget
own,
Bar
bados
Champi
onshi
ps

Asi
anWomen's
2010 46 Ast
ana,
Kazakhst
an
Champi
onshi
ps

2010 51 Asi
anGames Guangzhou,
Chi
na

2011 48 Asi
anWomen'
sCup Hai
kou,
Chi
na

Asi
anWomen's
2012 41 Ul
anBat
or,
Mongol
i
a
Champi
onshi
ps

London,Uni
ted
2012 51 SummerOl
ympi
cs
Kingdom

2014 51 Asi
anGames I
ncheon,
Sout
hKor
ea

Asi
anWomen's HoChiMinhCi
ty,
2017 48
Champi
onshi
ps Vi
etnam

Commonweal
th Gol
dCoast,
2018 45–48
Games Queensl
and,
Austr
ali
a

AI
BAWomen'sWorld
2018 45–48 NewDel
hi,
Indi
a
Champi
onshi
ps
 2019AIBAWomen' s
2019 51 Worl
dBoxing Ul
an-
Ude,
Russi
a
Championshi
ps

Nat
ional
 Gol
d–1st
WomenNat .
Boxi
ng
Championshi
p,
Chennai
6–12.2.
2001

TheEastOpen

Boxi
ngChamp,
Bengal
11–14December2001

 2ndSrWorldWomenBoxi
ngChampi
onshi
p,NewDel
hi
26–30December2001

 Nat
ional
WomenSor
tMeet
,N.Del
hi26–30December2001

 32ndNat
ional
Games,
Hyder
abad2002

 3r
dSrWor
ldWomenBox
ingChamp,
Aizawl
4–8.
3.2003

 4t
hSrWWBC,
Kokr
ajar
,Assam 24–28Febr
uar
y2004

 5t
hSrWWBC,
Ker
ala26–30December2004

 6t
hSrWWBC,
Jamshedpur29Nov
ember
-3.
12.
2005

 10t
hWNBC,
Jamshedpurl
ostQFby1–4on5Oct
ober2009
 Awardsand
Recogni
ti
on
Mar yKom setanew
standardinamat eur
boxingwi thoutev er
compet ingin
professionalbox i
ng.In
2015, Kom becamet he
fi
rstamat eurtosur pass
severalprofessional
athl
etesinI
ndiainearni
ngs,endor
sement sandawar ds.Sheis
thefi
rstamateurat
hletetowinthePadmaBhushan.

Nat
ionalawar
ds
 PadmaVi
bhushan 
(Spor
ts)
,2020

 PadmaBhushan 
(Spor
ts)
,2013

 Raj
i
vGandhi
Khel
Rat
naawar
d,2009

 PadmaShr
i 
(Spor
ts)
,2006

 Ar
junaAwar
d (
Boxi
ng)
,2003

Ot
herawar
dsandr
ecogni
ti
on
 TheInter
nationalBoxi
ng
Associ
ation(AIBA)  
awar
dedMar y
Kom withthefirstAIBALegends
awardsfor"promi si
ngboxi
ngcareer
"

 TheI
nter
nat
ional
Box
ing
 Associ
ati
on(AIBA) 
announcedMar
yKom ast
hebrand
ambassadorfor 
2016AIBAWomen'sWor
ldBoxi
ng
Championshi
ps

 Peopl
eoft
heYear
- 
LimcaBookofRecor
ds,
2007

 CNN-I
BN 
& Rel
i
anceI
ndust
ri
es'
 
Real
Her
oesAwar
d 14.
4.
2008Mon

 Pepsi
 
MTV 
Yout
hIcon2008

 ‘
Magni
fi
centMar
y’,
AIBA2008

 I
nter
nat
ional
BoxingAssoci
ati
on'
sAmbassadorf
orWomen'
s
Boxi
ng2009(TSE30July2009Thur
)

 Spor
tswomanoft
hey
ear2010,
 
Sahar
aSpor
tsAwar
d

 Ol
ympi
ansf
orLi
fe 
byWOA.

 Honor
ary 
Doctor
ate 
degree(D.
Lit
t)f
rom Nort
h-East
ernHi
ll
Uni
ver
sit
y on29March2016and( DPhi
l)fr
om Kazir
anga
Uni
ver
sit
y on14January2019

Fort
hebr
onzemedalatt
he2012LondonOl
ympi
cs

 ₹5mil
li
on (
US$70,
000)cashawar
dandt
woacr
esofl
and
fr
om t
he Mani
pur 
Government

 ₹2.5mi
ll
ion (
US$35,
000)cashawar
dfr
om
the 
Raj
asthan 
Gover
nment

 ₹2mi l
l
ion 
(US$28,000)cashawar
dfr
om
the 
Assam Government

 ₹1mi l
li
on 
(US$14,
000)cashawar
dfr
om t
he 
Arunachal
Pradesh 
Government

 ₹1mi
l
li
on 
(US$14,
000)cashawar
dfr
om t
he 
Mini
str
yof
 Tr
ibal
Aff
air
s(I
ndi
a)

 ₹4mill
i
on 
(US$56,
000)cashawar
dfr
om t
he 
Nor
thEast
ern
Counci
l

 '
Meet
hoi
l
eima'
ti
tl
e,Mani
purGov
t.(
2018)

Medi
aand
Popul
arCul
tur
e
Heraut
obi
ographyUnbr
,
  eakabl
e,wasco-
author
edbyDi
na
Ser
to 
andpubli
shedby
 HarperColl
i
ns 
inl
ate2013.
Pr
iyankaChopr
a portr
ayedKom i Mar
n  yKom,a2014Hindi
l
anguagebiogr
aphicalfi
l
m aboutherl
if
e.Themoviei
sdirect
ed
by 
OmungKumar  andwasreleasedon5September2014.
Kom alsofeaturesi
nt he2016document aryWi
  th
Thi
sRi ng,
whichf ol
lowst heexperi
encesof
I
ndia'swomen' sboxingteam acrossthecourse
ofsixyear
sf r
om 2006-2012.

Mar
yKom bi
ogr
aphy
MaryKom is,
withoutdoubt
,oneofthemost
f
ascinat
ingathl
etesontheplanet
.It
’snowonder
thatshehasalreadyhadafeat
uref
il
m madeaboutherli
fe:
Kom’ sstor
yisremarkabl
e.Bor
ninapoorr
egionofIndi
a,i
t
l
ookedl i
kelyt
hatshewouldendupworki
ngthelandwithher
famil
y .
But–ov ercomingtheobject
ionsfrom herf
amil
y–shemov ed
tothecit
y,becameabox erafterpersuadi
ngalocal
coachto
takeheron, andworkedherwayupt obecomingachampion.
Kom hassincewonamedal atallei
ghtAIBAWor l
dBox ing
Championshipssinceitsincept i
onin2001( si
xgolds,
asi l
ver
andabronze, mostrecentlyin2019) ,
risentono.
1i nt
heAI BA
worl
drankingsforaf l
ywei ght,andcompet edatt
heLondon
2012OlympicGames, winningabr onzemedal af
terbeing
beat
enbyev entualchampi onNi colaAdams.
Shewasalsot
hefi
rstI
ndianwomant
owinagol
dmedalatt
he
AsianGames(
in2014)andatt
heCommonweal
thGames
(2018)
.
Butshei satrai
l
blazerinmor eway sthanone.Kom has
combi nedf i
ghti
ngwi t
hbeingamot heroft hr
eey oungchil
dren,
sherunsaspor tscl
ubi nhernat i
veMani pur,
trai
ning
youngst erstoboxforfree,andshehasbecomeamemberof
theIndianUpperHouseofPar l
iament,theRajyaSabha,
campai gningonnumer ousi ssuesforherf el
l
owci ti
zens.
SheisanIndi
annationalheroal
ready–buttherecouldyetbe
anamazingfi
nalchaptertohersport
ingcar
eer.Kom is
determi
nedtomakei ttoTokyo2020andwinagol dmedal .
Whatanachievementthatwouldbe–andwhataf it
ti
ngendi t
couldbetoaglor
iousbox i
ngcareer.

Per
sonalLi
fe
Kom ismarri
edtothe
foot
ball
erKarungOnkholer
(Onl
er).
 Kom f
ir
stmether
husbandin2000afterher
l
uggagewasst ol
enwhi l
etravel
l
ingbyt raintoBangal
ore.
I
n NewDel hi whil
eonherwayt othe  National
Games  i
n Punjab shemetOnkhol erwhowasst udyi
nglaw
at 
DelhiUniversit
y.Onkholerwast hepr esidentoft
heNor t
h
Eaststudentsbodyandhel pedKom.Theybecamef r
iendsand
ther
eafterbegandat ingeachother .Afterfouryear
stheywere
marri
edi n2005.
Toget
hert
heyhavet
hreesons,
twi
nsbor
nin2007,
andanot
her
sonborni
n2013.

Associ
ati
onwi
thSoci
alCause
Kom isan  animal r
ights acti
vist,
andsuppor t
erof  PETA 
Indi
a,
starri
nginanadt ocal lforanendt otheuseofel ephant
sin
cir
cuses." Ci
rcusesar ecr uelplacesforanimalswher etheyare
beatenandt ort
ured.Asamot her,Icanimaginewhatani mals
got hroughwhent heirchildr
enar etakenawayf rom them to
forcefull
yper f
ormi ncircuses.It'
ssad, "Kom hasbeenquot edi
n
themedi a.
Kom hasal sobackedPETAI ndia'shumaneeducat ion
campai gn,Compassi onateCi t
izen.Shehaswr i
tt
enal etterto
theeducat i
onmi nistersofst atesanduni onterri
toriesacr oss
Indi
ar equesti
ngt hatt heprogrammebei ncorporatedi nto
offi
cialschoolcurriculums.I nani ntervi
ewinthe Timesof
Indi
a shewasquot edassay ing, "Oneofthebestway stoknock
outcr uel
tytoanimal si stoteachcompassi ontoy oungpeopl e.
Animal sneedusi nt heircorner.Wi thviol
enceseemi nglyall
aroundus, i
tismor ei mpor t
antt hanev erthatwet eachl essons
ofrespectandki ndnessi nt hecl assroom."
Mangt eChungneij
angKom, betterknownasMar yKom, t
he
gutsyboxerfrom aremotecor nerofMani pur,whomadeher
wayt otheOlympicswithmer elythepowerofherpassi onfor
thesport,i
sdefini
tel
ywor t
hyofabi opi
cfullofreverence.But
alas,i
roni
call
y,debutdir
ectorOmungKumar '
sf i
lm onherlif
eis
extremelymeekandpl aysirr
it
atinglysaf
e.
Thisnev er
-say
-di
egi r
lfrom av i
l
lagecal l
edKangat heihas
everythi
nggoingagainsther.Herf atherisagainstherchoi ceof
sportandherpoorf amilyisreeli
ngunderf inancialconst r
aint
s
andy et,
inwhatiseasilyanawei nspir
ingtale,shepl odson
withthehelpofalocal coachandmanagest oreachhei ghts
thatnoonecoul dhavei maginedofher .Thef il
m, howev er,
doesi nj
usti
cetothi
sgr itt
ystory.

Unf ortunat elyf or'Magni f

icent
'Mar yandt heaudi ence, the
directorandt hewr iter( SaiwynQuadr as)takethei nsincer e,
masal ast oryt ell
ingr out eandendupmessi ngt hewhol e
exper ience.Toaddt ot hat ,
non-cl
ev eri nyourfacebr and
endor sement s,whi chi ncludedicecr eam br andst opr egnant
det ectionki t
s, ifyoupl ease,madei twor se.Lackofhar dwor k
anddept honpar toft het eam i
srev eal edmanyat i
mes,
especi all
yint hatonescenewher eMar yKom wr i
thi
ngi nl abour
painst rugglest ogett oahospi taldur ingacur fewsi tuat i
on.
Ther esear cht eam obv iouslywassobusyt hi
nkingupi deas
howt okeept heaudi encet hri
l
ledthatt heydidn’tbothert oev en
goneart heact ualcrisissi t
uati
onsdoggi ngt hi
sNor t
hEast ern
stat e.

Onehastoadmitthattherewereaf ewscat
teredsceneswhich
managedtotouchachor d,butt
heyalsomadeoner eali
sewhat
thi
sfi
l
m couldhavebeen, i
funpoll
utedbyendorsementsand
poi
ntl
esssensati
onal
ism.

Igiveoneex trastartoPr i
yankaChopr a.Thisgirlwentthrough
magi calphysicaltransformationtomakeher selfbeli
evableas
thebox er.Butwhatst ri
kesmor eisherhear twarmi ngand
sincereportray al
oft hecharacter.Watchherqui et
determinationi nspiteofherfather '
soppositi
on, watchherin
thering,wat chherhel plessasherspor ttakesabackseatwhen
sher el
uctant l
yset t
lesintomat r
imonyandmot herhoodandy ou
knowt heact r
esshasputherhear tandsoul i
ntot herol
e.

Onler(
DarshanKumaar
),whoplaysMary
’shusband,
isdecent
butSunil
Thapa,whopl
aysthepiv
otal
rol
eherofhercoachM
Nar
ij
itSi
ngh,
disappoi
ntswi
thhi
stot
all
ackofex
pressi
ons.

All
thisf
il
m neededwasabi tmoregutstocharti
tsownpat h
wit
hMar yKom hersel
fasaninspi
rat
ion.Butsadl
y,theychose
toplayt
othegall
eryinst
ead.MaryandPriyankadeserv
eda
bett
erfi
l
m.