The entire country has become a fan of boxer Lovlina Borgohain after her brilliant performance at the Tokyo Olympics which earned her a bronze medal. But just like several other athletes, Lovlina had to face struggle not just in her athletic career, but in her family life as well.
Besides Lovlina Borgohain’s tremendous hard work, the credit for her Olympic success also goes to her parents and her coach, Sandhya Gurung.
According to Times Now, when Lovlina was younger, her father used to earn just Rs 2,500 in a month that would sustain a family of 5. Lovlina’s sisters were also involved in martial arts, so the entire family’s earning was very less. Speaking about their financial struggle, her father Tiken Borgohain said:
“Apart from owning a small farm, I worked in a tea garden near our village and used to earn Rs 2500 per month. With Lima and Licha pursuing martial arts and later Lovlina too opting for martial arts, managing the finances was tough. But I wanted my daughters to play whatever sport they liked.”
He went on to add how they used to take loans with high interest from the village cooperative society to meet all expenses.
“In the initial days, my wife would also take loans from Rs 50,000 to Rs 1.5 lakh from the village cooperative society and we would pay the instalments weekly with a high-interest rate. But somehow, we managed and to see them compete made us proud.”
Amidst the financial constraints, Lovlina’s mother suffered kidney failure.
“When her mother suffered a failure of both her kidneys, she (Lovlina) was worried and would not sleep at night worrying about her. When we got the donor, she wanted to be with her. Even though she was able to spend only two days, she made sure she supported the family. It was a second life for my wife and to see Lovlina return with a medal from Tokyo will be a cherished moment for all of us after all the tough times,” said her father.
On the other hand, Lovlina’s coach Sandhya Gurung, from Sikkim, has an inspiring life story as well. According to TOI, Sandhya suffered from paralysis for 3 years and later beat it to become a national-level boxer.
She had told former Olympian Jaslal Pradhan, who was also her husband’s friend, that she wanted to pursue boxing in his academy. Pradhan then informed her that there was no organized scope for women’s boxing.
It was in 1999 that women’s boxing opened up. She pursued it and 20 years on went on to become a national-level gold-winning boxer and Lovlina’s coach.
Sandhya revealed how when she first met Lovlina, she was a “tall” and “shy” girl who would “panic” when she came across strong opponents. She further revealed how Lovlina used to get cold feet before major tournaments. During those times she used to call her a “lion”, reports ESPN.
“Tum sherni nahi ho, tum sher ho. (You aren’t a lioness, you are a lion),” she used to tell her.
Throughout the Tokyo Olympics, Lovlina and Sandhya used to stay in touch, discuss strategies, and even train online. Even though Sandhya couldn’t be there in Tokyo in person, she was always available for Lovlina.
This goes on to show how many people play a huge role in the making of a legendary athlete!