Commonwealth Games gold medallist Arundhati Chaudhary received a hero's welcome in her hometown of Kota, Rajasthan, celebrating her remarkable boxing achievements and highlighting the personal and societal challenges she overcame on her path to success.
Key Points
- Commonwealth Games gold medallist Arundhati Chaudhary received a grand welcome in her hometown of Kota, Rajasthan, after her impressive performance in Glasgow.
- Chaudhary's journey to gold included significant victories over world championship bronze-winner Chantelle Reid and defending champion Rosie Eccles.
- Her father, Suresh Choudhary, detailed the initial challenges, including a lack of proper boxing facilities and a coach who learned techniques from YouTube.
- Arundhati faced societal opposition in her community for pursuing boxing and wearing sports attire, which her father continuously fought against.
- Her immediate goal is to secure a spot for the upcoming Olympic Games in Los Angeles, with the World Championship next April being a primary target for qualification.
Commonwealth Games gold-winning boxer Arundhati Chaudhary (70kg) was left emotionally overwhelmed as her hometown of Kota, which is better known as a coaching hub for medical and engineering students, laid out the red carpet to welcome her after her gutsy performance in Glasgow.
Arundhati's tremendous run at the event included wins over world championship bronze-winner Chantelle Reid in the finals. She upstaged defending champion Rosie Eccles in the semifinals.
A visibly emotional and exhausted Arundhati, who had been on a celebratory 250km road journey from Jaipur to Kota, offered her medal to her mother Sunita on finally reaching her home base.
A Hero's Welcome in Rajasthan
"I earlier thought such enthusiastic and supportive environment for sports existed only in Haryana, but now it is not so, it does exist in Rajasthan also. It is for the first time that I received such a welcome from public as well as government in Rajasthan," she said on reaching in Kota on Thursday night.
Speaking to PTI on Friday, Arundhati and her father Suresh Choudhary, who is also the president of Kota Boxing Association, detailed the journey filled with physical, financial and social challenges "Cutting weight was a persistent difficulty," she noted.
Future Aspirations and Overcoming Hurdles
Looking toward the future, Arundhati said her immediate priority is securing a spot for the upcoming Olympic Games. With less than two years remaining for the Games in Los Angeles, her primary target is securing a qualification ticket at the upcoming World Championship scheduled next April. Arundhati also shared the personal sacrifices involved in her strict competition regimen, particularly dietary restrictions while competing abroad as a vegetarian.
"I enjoyed four chapatis last night and yet wanted to have more," she said.
Societal Challenges and Family Support
Suresh recounted the struggles that defined his daughter's rise. "Boxing requires a proper ring and a professional coach, both of which Arundhati lacked in her early days," he said.
"She trained on asphalt surface at the Kota Stadium under a coach who initially had no background in boxing. He learned the techniques himself through YouTube videos to train her," he noted.
"In our community, women historically maintained a very traditional role and rarely went out alone. When Arundhati first wore sports shorts at the age of 15- 16 to train, it met with heavy opposition from relatives and locals in Kota and Bundi," he recalled.
"People criticised me, saying I was foolish to let my daughter cut her hair short and train in shorts. I had to fight those societal perceptions continuously."
