'Whenever I train, Olympics is right in my mind. It is my father's dream': Lovlina Borgohain

India's 69kg weight category champion woman boxer Lovlina Borgohain from Assam reached home at Golaghat on Monday morning after an overnight train journey from Guwahati with mixed emotions.

On the one hand, a happy Lovlina was returning with a gold medal from an international tournament in Kaspiysk, Russia, last week followed by the even happier news of her direct selection for her second Women's World Boxing Championships in Ulan-Ude, Russia, from October 3-13 without having to face the trials.
On the other hand, however, she was joining her folks to mourn the death of her grandfather, whose news she received on the day of her quarterfinal bout in Russia last week.

"I could not immediately go home following the death of my grandpa, as I received the news on the day of my quarterfinal bout in Russia. After returning from the tournament, I had to go straight to New Delhi for the World Championships selection trials. Despite being selected directly, I had to stay until the selections were done," Lovlina told DNA from Guwahati before boarding the train to Golaghat on Sunday evening.
Lovlina's journey in boxing has not been a smooth one. From the ups and downs of the recent past before hitting a purple patch this year, Lovlina looked ahead with hope and confidence gained from her recent success.

"It feels good that I have got direct selection for the World Championships. I'm happy with my performances this year. Through the direct entry, the nation has pinned more hopes on me to win a medal there. I have to do well. I will give 100 per cent," she said.
"This will be my second World Championships. In my first Worlds in New Delhi, 2018, I won bronze. This time, I want to convert it into gold. The win in Russia has given me confidence. Wherever I was found wanting in my first Worlds, the mistakes I made there, the technique, etc. I will get better on those things," said the 21-year-old.

(Lovlina Borgohain (in red) has set her sights on World Championships and Olympics)

Lovlina is only one of two boxers who gained direct entry without going through trials, veteran Mary Kom being the other. Unlike Mary Kom's controversial selection without trials, Lovlina's was smooth as she rarely has any competitor in her weight category anyway.
Asked for her comment on the controversy involving Mary Kom and Nikhat Zareen, who claimed she was not given a chance at the Worlds trials and hence missed out to Mary Kom, the Assamese boxer said: "The BFI (Boxing Federation of India) had made rules that based on performances, they will select the team. I cannot speak much on this. My selection was based on recent performances, the India Open silver and gold in Russia helping me get direct entry, as it had happened with me for the 2018 World Championships."

Olympic dream 

Lovlina's ultimate dream is to represent the country at the Olympics. "The world rankings will be done in the World Championships. A medal there, and the Olympic qualifying Asia-Oceania in early 2020 will be very important for Japan 2020," she said.
Lovlina does not have any competition in her welterweight category in the country, and thus the real challenge comes in not having a good sparring partner. Lovlina has to make do with those in other weight categories including Sarita Devi regularly.

In the world ring, she has been having a problem against one particular opponent. Lovlina tends to hit a roadblock when it comes to facing Chinese Taipei's reigning world champion Chen Nien-chin. Lovlina lost to Nien-chen in the semifinals of last year's World Championships 0-4 and also in the quarterfinal at the Asian Championships earlier this year, 0-5.
"The problem with me is I am losing to the same opponent every time, Chen Nien-chin. I have problem only with her, not with other boxers," admitted Lovlina.

"I also know that I can win against her. I am working on the psychology aspect of it. I have to change my mental approach when facing Nien-chin and go with a different mindset. It is not that I cannot win against her. I am working at it."
Lovlina's biggest break came in the 2018 Commonwealth Games in which she exited in the quarterfinals to English boxer and eventual gold medallist Sandy Ryan 2-3. "It was such a close contest that according to me, I had won. But in a 3-2 decision, you don't know who has won and who has lost."

The confidence of exacting revenge comes from the fact that Lovlina paid back her India Open final loss to Italy's Assunta Canfora by winning in Russia in the exact same margin, 3-2.

Humble background 

Despite her recent success, Lovlina still has a humble living in her hometown Golaghat, where she resides with her parents and falls back upon them for financial support.

The 1.77m-tall boxer has had all the backing and encouragement from her parents, with her father a small-time businessman and mother a home maker. Her humble background includes her household managing from her father's meagre salary of Rs 2,000 to Rs 3,000 per month.
"The home situation was not good financially. Yet, my parents and my twin sisters supported me in boxing. They told me to make a career in boxing. I am here for my parents," says Lovlina, proud of the way her career is progressing.

Timely help and recognition came from Sports Authority of India (SAI), who absorbed Lovlina when she was in Class 9. There was no looking back since.
One whose interest in sport began through kickboxing, which she practiced for one year, she credits this martial art form for making her fit in boxing.

Family's sacrifice

The burning desire to represent at the Olympics is becoming greater by the day for Lovlina. "My father has sacrificed a lot. He has not thought about himself. He just wanted his daughters to come up. Olympics has been my parents' dream and I am working towards it.
"Since I came into boxing, I have only been dreaming of Olympics and training towards it. From the time I started in 2012, I thought of making it to the 2016 Olympics but could not. Now the focus is on 2020. Whenever I train, Olympics is right in my mind. It is my father's dream," she said.

Lovlina is pleased with the kind of training she is receiving from SAI and also the international exposure from time to time.
"Besides the training that SAI is giving, I push myself. I don't want to leave any stone unturned in achieving the Olympics dream. We keep going out for training. We went to Italy, then Ireland. In 2018, we went to England and Australia. We get training in every situation and we also get to adjust according to our opponents. That way, the BFI has been of immense help. And, with regular competitions, our performances improve," said Lovlina.

An ardent fan of Muhammad Ali and Mike Tyson, Lovlina has not modelled her punches on any particular boxer.
"I like Tyson's style of boxing. I like Ali as he is tall and I am also tall. That said, you cannot become a perfect boxer by following anyone. Everyone's game is different. I watch videos of professional boxers and pick up points from them and apply in my game which I feel is necessary."

Lovlina is optimistic that the rest of the year will stay as productive as the first half.
"This year is very important to me. This year has been of ups and downs, some memorable wins and some not-so-great-ones. It is important to qualify for Olympics. If I don't qualify for the Games, all these results so far will be of no use. I want to give my best in the World Championships and the Asia Oceania qualifying tournament in January 2020," she said.

KNOW LOVLINA

• Born: October 2, 1997 in Golaghat, Assam
• Professaion career: 2012 onwards
• Category: Welterweight (69kg)
• Trains at: Sports Authority of India
• First coach: Padum Boro
• Later coaches: Shiv Singh, Sandhya Gurung

CAREER HIGHLIGHTS

• Gold: Magomed Salam Umakhanov Memorial International Tournament 2019 in Russia, August 2019
• Silver: India Open in Guwahati, May 2019
• Bronze: 70th Strandja Memorial tournament in Bulgaria, February 2019
• Bronze: World Championships in New Delhi, November 2018
• Gold: India Open in New Delhi, January 2018
• Bronze: Asian Championships in Vietnam, November 2017