New Delhi: The atmosphere at the Indian camp was immensely positive as the Indian quartet — M.C. Mary Kom (48kg), Lovlina Borgohain (69kg), Sonia (57 kg) and Simranjit Kaur (64 kg) — are gearing up for the Aiba Women’s World Boxing Championship semifinals beginning here on Friday.
The practice hall at the Indira Gandhi Stadium was buzzing with fast-paced music matching their tempo as Lovlina honed her skills with India’s foreign coach Raffaele Bergamasco as her sparring partner. Kohl-eyed Mary Kom was busy training with another coach Chhote Lal Yadav. Simranjit and Sonia also went through strenuous practice session with focussing more on punches and footwork.
“We had a good preparation today and we are ready for the semi-finals. We practiced today with a specific strategy and worked on technical part with the girls… Hopeful of good result,” said Italian Bergamasco.
Mary Kom and Lovlina will be seen in action on Thursday while Sonia’s and Simranjit’s bouts are lined-up for Friday.
No doubt, all eyes will be on the five-time world champion Mary when she takes on North Korean Kim Hyang Mi. The Indian had beaten Kim in her last meeting and the Manipuri veteran is confident of good show again.
“I am confident. I also know when to drop guard and when to attack. I have worked with the coaches and have a plan in place to counter her,” said Mary Kom, who is chasing her sixth world title.
Debutant Lovlina displayed a sub-lime show till now in the championship and the Assam girl will look to extend her form as her “ultimate goal is to win gold here”. She will be up against Chinese Taipei’s Chen Nien-Chin on Thursday, whom she lost in the CWG earlier this year.
“My next match is against a Taipei girl and she is shorter in height than me, so I trained accordingly today,” said Lovlina.
Lovlina was all praise of coach Bergamasco and said he explained things very well and that helped them a lot.
“He has a plan before our every bout and we stick to that plan. After CWG this is my first international event and I wanted to win gold. The pre-quarterfinal bout was the toughest one here and semi-final is also going to be tough.”
She added, “Home advantage matters a lot and it gives us immense confidence. Home support and familiarity to the venue gives us belief that we can win.”
Two other Indians in fray, Sonia and Simranjit also said they are well prepared for the semis. Sonia faces North Korea’s Jo Son Hwa while Simranjit had China’s Dan Dou as her opponent.
“Dan Dou is very speedy so I should match that. I have also seen her video and will work on my strategy accordingly,” Simrajit said.
