Mary Kom shrieked as she fell and slowly got back on her feet. But she struggled to move freely, was in pain again and clutched her knee. Had she continued, it would have been foolhardy.
The Commonwealth Games in Birmingham was to be a celebratory farewell parade for six-time world champion Marry Kom. Now the 39-year-old, five months short of her 40th birthday, which is the cut-off age for amateur boxing at major events, could walk into the sunset without a final testimonial tournament podium photo.
Fate had a cruel twist in store for the boxing legend.
At the trials for the CWG, the London Olympics bronze medalist lost her footing early as she swayed away in the first round of the semifinals (48 kg) against two-time Youth Olympics champion Ritu Ghanghas. Mary shrieked as she fell and slowly got back on her feet. But she struggled to move freely, was in pain again and clutched her knee. Had she continued, it would have been foolhardy.
Nitu was declared the winner via referee-stops-contest. The anticipated bout between the 21-year-old upcoming star and a veteran nearly double her age came to a premature end.
Soon Mary limped out of the IG Stadium with support, got into her SUV and left. Mary doesn’t need a second CWG medal — she won gold at Gold Coast in 2018 — at the fag end of her career. But once she overcame the disappointment of a pre-quarterfinal exit at the Tokyo Olympics, her competitive spirit had been rekindled. She had trained, first in Manipur and then in Delhi, like she had everything to prove. The CWG was a clear target in her mind.