Women's World Boxing Championships 2019: All you need to know about India's five debutantes ahead of marquee event

New Delhi: The latest edition of Women’s World Boxing Championships will take place in Russia’s Ulan-Ude from 3-13 October. India’s challenge will be led by six-time world champion MC Mary Kom, who will be fighting in the 51kg category. The event, though not an Olympic qualifier, assumes significance as a medal guarantees automatic qualification for next year’s Olympic qualifiers in China.

Besides Mary, and the experienced Sarita Devi, the ten-member Indian team has five new faces . The event provides an excellent opportunity for first-timers to make an impact. The squad had a training camp from 8-22 September in Italy, and the boxers can’t stop gushing from the experience. While excellent sparring is a common takeaway, what has chuffed them the most is the chance to watch and box against the Chinese,  considered among the best in Asia.

Firstpost caught up with Manju Rani, Jamuna Boro, Neeraj, Manju Bomboriya, and Nandini at their final training session on home soil before they leave for Russia. Here’s a lowdown on all the girls making their debut at the World Championships:

Manju Rani (48kg): Nineteen-year-old Manju Rani shot to national limelight earlier this year when she won gold on her Senior Nationals debut, beating Tamil Nadu’s S Kalaivani by a 4-1 verdict. Ten months since that memorable day in Vijanagara, Manju is all set to make her senior World Championships debut in Russia’s Ulan-Ude. She hopes to return with a medal and make her mother proud. Manju lost her father — a soldier with the Border Security Force — in 2010, and saw her mother struggle to make ends meet.

“We were a large family, and my mother had to struggle a lot after father passed away due to illness. She took care of all the five children from the meagre pension that the family got after father’s death. Whatever I am today, it is because of my mother. I want to make her proud,” she told Firstpost before leaving for Russia.

Manju hails from Rithal village in Haryana’s Rohtak district and played kabaddi in her formative years. However, the popularity of Mary Kom and Vijender Singh, and the fact that kabaddi happens to be a team sport, swung her towards the ring.

“My father used to dissuade me from boxing. Those were just the very initial years when I was only beginning to develop an interest in the game. He was worried that I may injure my face and then no one would marry me,” she remembered. Manju took up the sport anyway and started formal training in the sport in 2013. Five years later, she entered the national team on the back of her Nationals gold. A silver at the Strandja Memorial Tournament in Bulgaria followed and she booked her place in the World Championships squad after beating Monika in trials.

Recalling her initial years in boxing, Manju said, “I used to be a bit scared when I started. I feared getting hit badly in the face. Gradually, as I started taking hits and giving back, the fear began to disappear.”

“I met Mary Kom in 2018 when I came to the national camp. I had heard so much about her all my life, and here I was, right in front of her. I observed her movements and feints, and she explained to me how she does that. She used to box in 48 kg, so I want to carry her legacy and bring pride to the nation.”

Mary famously won her sixth World Championships gold last year in front of a thundering home crowd in New Delhi, and Manju watched it from her home in Rithal. “I saw the adulation she received and wanted to do the same. I wanted the applause and attention, and I am happy that I reached this stage in a year.” The stage, of course, is set, and all that Manju has to do is make her mother proud.

Jamuna Boro (54kg): Jamuna Boro, the tall boxer from Assam, wants to emulate the success of the legendary Mary Kom who comes from the same state as her. Jamuna, who will compete in the non-Olympic category of 54 kg, sealed her berth in India squad for the World Championships beating Shiksha in a tough battle at the trials.

Jamuna told Firstpost before leaving for the mega event in Russia that she is aiming for a gold medal as she has waited long for a world stage like this. Also, a good performance at the worlds will make her case stronger for the Olympics.

“When I switched from youth to seniors, I did not win anything for two years. I was a little lost when that happened,” she said.

Jamuna is riding high on recent successes, clinching gold at India Open and then at President’s Cup in Indonesia.

“Olympic is my target. I would want to change my weight class. If I do well here, I can request the coaches to change the class. It is all in my hands,” she said.

The 22-year-old began as a wushu player and later switched to boxing at the age of 9. She feels that the training program in Italy has helped her and other boxers to prepare well for the championships. However, the fear of not performing ceases to go away.

She said, “The thoughts of my performance inside the ring is troubling me these days. I need the medals.” Jamuna thinks these thoughts will remain with her until the day she goes inside the ring in Russia.

Neeraj (57kg): When Neeraj was younger, her father and brothers wanted her to be a wrestler — not out of place in Haryana’s Charkhi Dadri district where she comes from. Neeraj, though, didn’t particularly like any of the two sports.

“I would regularly accompany my brothers to akhada, so they thought wrestling might be a good sport for me,” she remembered. In fact, Neeraj is a bit of a late bloomer who picked pace once she realised her calling. It was not until her graduation years in her district’s APJ College that she began taking boxing seriously, and four years later, won a Nationals gold.

“I started boxing seriously in 2012; I remember I was in college then. I agree it was a bit late to start, but I never thought of playing for India,” she chuckled.

After two years of formative boxing, Neeraj participated in the trials for the National Games in 2014, in Bhiwani, and ended up beating some top Haryana girls, including Pinki Jangra. As per Neeraj, she could not make it to the Haryana team because it was deemed she was too new. However, following her impressive show, she was asked to join the national camp. But she “didn’t feel like continuing” and left the camp midway. In 2016, she participated in Nationals in Haridwar and won gold in the 51kg category to return to the camp in style.

Neeraj’s second wind was fuelled by her elder brother Hitesh, who returned to shape her boxing career after his attempts at becoming a wrestler ended in damaged ligaments. “He had shifted to Delhi to train, but after his ligament injury, he came back to guide me. When you don’t have anyone to guide you properly, you tend to lose interest, and the same was happening to me,” she recalled.

Neeraj’s recent form is impressive. She won gold at the India Open this year, and claimed another top finish at the Umakhanov Memorial International in August. In the trials held for World Championships, she defeated talented Asian Championships bronze-medallist Manisha Moun to secure the 57kg berth. The team trained in Italy’s Assisi from 8-22 September, and Neeraj reckons the experience will hold the team in good stead at the world event.

“Our stint in Italy was very fruitful as we played against boxers from China, Italy, Korea, and we sparred against some very good boxers. The biggest gain was having the Chinese boxers around. They are among the toughest opponents in Asia, and after sparring with them, I can say that the gap is not that great. They have speed, but they can be beaten. If our boys can beat Chinese boxers, why can’t we?”

“Quietly confident” ahead of her maiden World Championships, Neeraj conceded she is a “naturally a bit nervous.” Her realistic target, she says, is reaching the final.

“I have good strength and power in my punches. Also, the fact that I am a southpaw helps. Coaches tell me that since I have decent power, I should hit the uppercut more often. “Ek bar lag gaya, to saamne wala uth nai sakta (If I connect my uppercut, the opponent won’t be able to get back on her feet),” she said.

Manju Bomboriya (64 kg): Manju hails from Khacharod tehsil of Ujjain district in Madhya Pradesh. Kabaddi and Kho Kho interested her as a kid, but her life changed after her coach at school asked her to try boxing in 2013. Manju was in Class 11 then, and the year was 2013. She steadily grew up the ranks, won gold for her school at state-level where coaches from SAI’s Bhopal centre took note of her height and southpaw style. Soon, she shifted base to SAI Bhopal, and her boxing career formally started.

Manju made it to senior camp in 2017, but sustained an ACL injury on her knee that kept her out of contention for two years. After a lengthy rehab, she returned to the Indian camp in 2019 after playing Nationals. she made it to the team for World Championships after stunning Assam’s 2017 World Youth Champion Ankushita Boro in the final.

“I have worked hard on my game post injury. My confidence is up. I have a good attacking and defensive game, and I am working on my counter-attacks now,” she told Firstpost.

“Our recent camp in Italy was a great learning experience. A number of good boxers had turned up, and we sparred against different opponents each day. I worked on certain flaws in my game and am hopeful of a good show at the Worlds,” she concluded.

Nandini (81kg): Nandini was in Class 11 when she was asked by her coach to pursue boxing. She was just 16 at that time. In about three and a half years from that day, she flew to Russia as part of the ten-member squad for the Women’s Boxing World Championship. She will be competing in the 81 kg category in Russia.   Not just that, she is also the first woman boxer from Chandigarh to be taking part in the Worlds. “I feel very proud that I am first from Chandigarh to book a place and now that I am going to represent India,” she told Firstpost.   Her journey has been short and sweet so far. She clinched medals at nationals, and then through open trials, was selected for India camp. At 5'8”, Nandini likes to play aggressive but knows that learning should not stop. She has been trying to work hard on learning more techniques.   “I like to play an aggressive game. I like to advance and attack. I have stuck to this style and will continue to play that way, but I am working on other techniques in my boxing like slip movement.”

She said that her focus is to gain more experience playing at major tournaments like the World Championships, before adding that there is nothing better than a medal.