‘Earlier when Lovlina used to do boxing, the village people used to taunt us. It was said that the daughter should not do all this. You get your daughter beaten. Then she won a medal in the Olympics. Then the same village celebrated as if it was the festival of Bihu. Lovlina’s medal win
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Lovlina’s father Tiken Borgohain has been a witness and companion to her difficult journey. There was a time when Tiken used to work in a private job and could earn only Rs 4,000 by working for a whole month. Lived with his wife and three daughters in Baromukhiya village of Golaghat district of Assam.
The condition of the house was such that there was no money even for Lovlina’s diet. She used to box with a normal diet and also won medals.
In the photo, Lovlina is with mother and father Tiken. According to Tiken, her mother is the reason behind Lovlina becoming a boxer. She wanted her daughter to learn martial arts for self-defense.
On Wednesday, July 31, Lovlina will compete in the round of 16 in the middle weight category at the Paris Olympics. She faces junior world champion Sunniva Hofstad of Norway. Lovlina had won the bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics. This time too he is a contender. If she wins the medal, she will be the first Indian boxer to win two Olympic medals. Read the ground report from Lovlina’s house…
Saw Mohammed Ali’s photo in the paper, decided to become a boxer like him
Describing about Lovlina’s journey, Tiken says, ‘In 2019, Lovlina won gold in the National Games. Then I told him that now you have to win the Olympics. This is difficult, so before every match of yours, remember Muhammad Ali and be like him.
Why Mohammad Ali? Tiken replies, ‘Lovlina’s journey started with Mohammad Ali. Once saw the photo of Mohammad Ali in the paper. Read his story. It settled in his mind that he wanted to become like Mohammad Ali. Lovlina’s defense is not only strong, she also delivers powerful punches and jabs. Muhammad Ali was also known for his footwork and punches.
Started boxing at the age of 14, won Junior National Championship the same year
Lovlina’s two elder sisters Licha and Lima used to play Muay Thai. This is a form of kick boxing. Seeing her sisters, Lovlina also started practicing Muay Thai from an early age. In 2012, at the age of 14, he started boxing training. For this she left the village and came to Guwahati, about 300 km away. She was in 9th class then.
Lovlina’s father Tiken says, ‘She was selected, but we did not have money to send her to Guwahati. During the day I got a call that you have to reach Guwahati by the next morning. Arranged money from here and there.
‘Lovlina and I left for Guwahati by train in the night itself. We had general tickets. There were no seats in the train, so I spent the entire journey sitting on the floor. Lovlina won the Junior National Championship in 2012 itself. Next year, she won a silver medal in the 2013 National Women’s Junior Cup in Serbia.
‘In 2015 also, a camp for the junior boxing team was organized at SAI’s Bhopal centre. Lovlina had gone to participate in it. When she lived in Bhopal, her expenses were Rs 10,000. We didn’t even have that much money.
‘There was a lot of shortage of money. He needed money for his diet. We used to borrow and send money. Many times there was no money for diet. Lovlina played and won many tournaments even on a normal diet.
Lovlina was honored with the Arjuna Award in 2020. She was the sixth player from Assam to receive this award.
Went to Bhopal for training, got lost on the way
Lovlina’s boxing career started from the camp of Sports Authority of India, i.e. SAI. SAI had conducted boxing trials in the school. It was here that a coach named Padum Boro noticed Lovlina. Padum Boro had gone to Golaghat in search of new talent under a project of SAI.
olympics.com. Padum Boro told in an interview, ‘I took tests like Lovlina’s punching bag, fast punching. Seeing his performance I felt that he could be made a boxer.
‘After this he was called to Bhopal for training. At the age of 14, she went to Bhopal for the first time. While coming back to Guwahati, Lovlina got lost at Howrah station. His train also left. Seeing him alone, CRPF personnel interrogated him and made him board a train going to Guwahati.
Lovlina had won the bronze medal in the 69 kg weight category in the Tokyo Olympics. She is the third Indian boxer to win an Olympic medal after Mary Kom and Vijender Singh.
Went in front of the coach for the first time, had not boxed till then
Padum Boro was Lovlina’s first coach. Padum Boro was among those whom Lovlina made the first call after qualifying for the Paris Olympics. When we met him, he was present as a judge in a local boxing tournament in Udalguri district of Assam.
Padum Boro says, ‘Lovlina used to play kick boxing earlier. After his selection in Golaghat, he came to Guwahati to learn boxing. Since then she has been training in Guwahati. Lovlina had never played boxing before she came to me. In Guwahati he started from basic. Within a few days she started winning medals.
Padum Boro says, ‘Until Lovlina brought the medal, many families did not support women in boxing. She won a medal in the Olympics, after that women are also coming forward in this sport.
Girls are learning boxing after seeing Lovlina.
Lovlina’s photo is also displayed in the ongoing tournament in Udalguri. 15 year old Ramai Kechan, who was found here, says, ‘I want to become the next Lovlina of Assam. There is full support from the family also.
Tiken Borgohain says on this, now good facilities for boxing have started being available in Assam. 10 years ago there were very few arrangements in the state. Things got better after Lovlina started winning tournaments. The government also started supporting boxing more.
‘Earlier Lovlina used to live in a hostel. There were no facilities there even then. Now the hostel has all the facilities. The government is supporting the players. Lovlina also gets scholarship from the government.
If she wins medal in Paris, she will leave Mary Kom behind.
Lovlina Borgohain won the bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics. She is the third Indian boxer after Vijender Singh and Mary Kom to win an Olympic medal. She is participating in 75 kg weight category.
After winning bronze in Tokyo, Lovlina was not able to do anything special in the ring. It seemed as if his career was about to end. She was a contender for gold in the Commonwealth Games, but lost in the quarter-finals. Forget about gold, she could not even win bronze. After this she made a comeback and became the world champion by defeating the Australian boxer.
Lovlina is once again in the Olympics. The biggest challenge before him could be two-time Olympic medalist Chinese boxer Li Qian. Lovlina has been seeded eighth, while Li Qian is ranked number one. Lovlina has a chance to face Li Qian in the quarter-finals.
Li Qian defeated Lovlina in the final of the Asian Games in 2023. This year, Lovlina had defeated Li Qian 4-1 in the semi-finals of the 2023 IBA Women’s World Boxing Championship held in Delhi.
