Lovlina Borgohain, Assam’s first woman to partake in Olympics, carries pride to her state, winning a medal for India at Tokyo Olympics. 

It took five days of misery and dissatisfaction since Mirabai Chanu’s silver award for India to drive its second medal home. At a point when India’s promising shooters were failing to win something, fighter Lovlina Borgohain guarantees a medal for India, crushing Chinese Taipei’s Nien-Chin Chen to arrive at women’s welterweight elimination rounds in 69kg. 

First-ever woman athlete to represent her home state, Assam in the Olympics, Lovlina thumped her way into the semi-finals assuring a medal for her country and beating her arch-rival, Chen Nien-Chin of Chinese Taipei, in the most dominating fashion of 4-1. She becomes the second woman after Mary Kom to win an Olympic medal for India.  

Yesterday, Mary Kom played her last stretch at the Tokyo Olympics on Day 6 of the Games and lost to the 2016 Rio Olympics bronze medalist, Ingrit Valencia and caused a flow of sentiment to gush. Lovlina Borgohain, from adjoining Assam, ascertained that we can shed tears of joy as she took over the baton from Kom at the Olympics. 

Coming from Assam’s Sarupathar in the Golaghat district, Lovalina kicked off her journey with kickboxing but later switched to boxing. In her village, the natives and her juniors commenced wall paintings in various places in Golaghat district to exhibit support and motivation to Lovlina. 

Lovlina finally rose up to her expectations and delivered her promise. Last year, the world champion boxer was tested positive for coronavirus before going to Italy with her peers for a training camp. But before that, Lovlina supported her state during covid relief work. When the whole country was in lockdown, Lovlina prepared 250 packets of fruits, vegetables, and ration for the poor in her village, Barpathar. 

Lovlina began her training in 2012 under her coach Padum Boro. Boro took her under after she displayed a majestic performance in the trials at her high school by the Sports Authority of India. 2018 led to substantial development of her career when she won the bronze medal at the AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championships. She repeated her feat again in 2019 and was conferred the Arjuna Award by President Ram Nath Kovind.