One More Indian to be Proud Of!

Mary Kom gets fourth consecutive World Championship gold
29 Nov 2008, 1420 hrs IST, PTI

NINGBO CITY: India's MC Mary Kom (46kg) re-asserted her status as the world's most successful woman boxer clinching an unprecedented fourth successiv


In a repeat of the previous World Championship final in New Delhi, the 25-year-old out-punched Romania's Steluta Duta 7-1 to grab India's only gold medal at the event. The other Indian finalist, N Usha (57kg) had to be content with a silver for the second successive time after she lost 1-6 to Chinese Qin Jian. The defending champions, who were here with a small seven-member contingent, thus finished the tournament with a haul of one gold, a silver and two bronze medals -- through Chhoto Laura (50kg) and L Sarita Devi (52kg), who lost in the semi-finals on Friday. Though she couldn't ensure that the team retained the overall title, Mary Kom was once again the star of the show for India. The Manipuri boxer remained away from the ring for two years to take care of her twin babies after completing a hat-trick of World Championship golds in New Delhi. The pint-sized pugilist returned to don the gloves this year at the Asian Championships in September where she failed to retain her gold and settled for a silver. She claimed the National title earlier this month before leaving for the World Championship to achieve the spectacular feat.