'Tokyo will be my last Olympics,' announces six-time World Champion Mary Kom

Ahead of the upcoming 2022 Summer Games, India's ace boxer Mary Kom has said that the Tokyo Olympics will be her last appearance at the marquee event. Kom, who won the bronze in the 2012 Olympics, pointed out the age limit barrier which restricts her from qualifying for the Olympics. Re-visiting her achievement in the 2012 Summer Games, Kom expressed that her career would be 'diminished' if she hadn't participated in the prestigious Olympics. 

"Tokyo will be my last Olympics. Age matters here. I am 38 now, going on 39. Four (three) more years is a long time," Mary Kom told the Olympic Channel.

Initially, 40 was set at the age limit for participation in the Tokyo Olympics which was slated to be held in 2020, however, due to the COVID-19 pandemic the age limit had been extended to 41. Having turned 38 this March, Mary Kom will be over the current limit by the time the next Olympics in Paris 2024 rolls around.

'Changed my life'

"It means a lot for me to be an Olympian. I have been boxing for 20 years. I have participated in many international tournaments. I have been the world champion. But I had to wait for my turn to take part in the Olympics as women's boxing wasn't in the Games until 2012. Finally, it happened, and I am glad it did. I think the value of my career as a boxer would have diminished if I didn't compete in the Olympics," Mary Kom added.

Highlighting the significance of the quadrennial event, Kom said that winning a medal at the Olympics or even participating changes lives. "Becoming an Olympian and winning the bronze changed my life too. It also inspired many women to take up the sport, especially boxing. I feel proud. I want more girls to come out and fight. I hope there are no restrictions on them to come out and fight for themselves and their country," she said.

Throughout her career, Mary Kom has won eight World Championship medals and is the only female boxer to have won a medal in each one of the first seven World Championships. She is also the only female to become World Amateur Boxing champion for a record six times. IN 2014, she won the gold medal at the Asian Games and repeated the feat at the 2018 Commonwealth Games. Kom was conferred with the Padma Vibhushan in 2020. 

Recently, M C Mary Kom (51kg) settled for a bronze medal in the 35th Boxam International Boxing Tournament in Castellon, Spain after going down to American Virginia Fuchs in an intensely-contested semifinal bout. The 37-year-old Olympic-bound star lost in a split decision after an exhausting contest that was also messy in equal measure.