'I will try my best to win gold at the Olympics. You can be assured that I will put in more than 100 per cent to achieve it.'
He had already scripted history but the Indian boxing ace said he wasn't quite done as he aimed for the gold in the World Championship
Star javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra is among the 20 sportspersons picked for the Arjuna Awards, who will be honoured by President Ram Nath Kovind at the Rashtrapati Bhawan.
Teen sensation Shiva Thapa (56kg) inched closer to Olympic qualification but the London dream ended for Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Suranjoy Singh (52kg) who lost in the second round of the Asian Olympic Boxing Qualifiers in Astana, Kazakhstan on Saturday.
Indian boxing legend M C Mary Kom, who claimed a gold medal on debut at the Commonwealth Games, will be India's flagbearer at the event's closing ceremony, in Gold Coast, on Sunday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
The 26-year-old boxer is aiming to become India's first boxer with three back-to-back Asian Games medals.
Mary Kom lets it rip after winning trial bout against Nikhat Zareen
Now boxer Manoj Kumar, a World Championships quarter-finalist, also a two-time Asian Championships bronze-medallist is seeking an appointment with Sports Minister Jitendra Singh, saying he was ignored for the Arjuna despite fine performances.
Mary Kom will represent the Asian bloc in the group
Rounding off a reasonably successful campaign for India, Shamjetsabam Sarjubala (48kg) and Pinki Jangra (51kg) clinched god medals.
The shoddy state of the Games Village stood exposed on Saturday when the Indian boxing team checked in at their residential block only to find defending Commonwealth Games gold medallist Akhil Kumar's bed collapsing.
A hoped-for fight to the finish for the year-end number one ranking at next month's ATP World Tour Finals in London will likely be a coronation for Rafael Nadal, who is virtually guaranteed ending 2017 top of the pile.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday.
Five-time boxing World champion M C Mary Kom on Saturday said it is very disappointing that India ranks number 3 in doping and urged the government and Sports Authority of India (SAI) to do more to curb the menace.
Diwakar Prasad and Harpal Singh progressed into the semifinals of their respective boxing events.
The fast-rising Ankush Dahiya (60kg) clinched a gold while the experienced L Devendro Singh (52kg) settled for a silver medal on the final day of the Ulaanbaatar Cup boxing tournament in Mongolia.
India's 572 athletes hope to return home with an overflowing treasure chest of medals.
The diminutive Manipuri became the most successful boxer in world championships' history when she claimed the 48kg category top honours in November last year in Delhi.
The 34-year-old, a five-time World champion and an Olympic bronze-medallist, struggled to connect clean punches against her taller rival and was even warned once for excessive bending.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
Virat Kohli sent the shutterbugs into a clicking frenzy as he received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award
Mary Kom is expected to be back in action at the World Championships to be held in New Delhi in November.
In a letter to the Minister, Amit Panghal, who became India's first male boxer to win a world championship silver last year, said that athletes should not have to plead their case for an award by nominating themselves.
India's boxer Shiva Thapa says throwing caution to the wind and hurting rivals from the very first second is helping him rediscover himself after enduring an erratic season last year.
A summary of sports events and sports persons, who made news on Thursday
Where stalwarts like MC Mary Kom failed, Sonia Lather brought home a medal.
>There's still hope and plenty to play for, says Rediff.com's Aruneel Sadadekar.
Impressed by India's performance at the Doha International Tournament, Aussie boxers want exchange programme with India, claims coach Gurbax Singh Sandhu
Five-time world champion M C Mary Kom settled for a bronze medal at the International Boxing Association's (AIBA) Olympic Test event in Rio de Janeiro after going down in the semifinals.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
India dominated the range and the ring as Shreyasi Singh's double trap gold shored up the medal tally while the entire men's Indian boxing contingent made the semi-finals to be assured of podium finishes in an unprecedented performance on Day 7 of the 21st Commonwealth Games, in Gold Coast on Wednesday.
As another eventful year draws to a close, Rediff.com gives you a pictorial look back at the best and worst moments that shaped the sports stories this year.
Olympic bronze-medallist and five-time world champion M C Mary Kom on Sunday denied reports that she made disparaging remarks against fellow male boxers like Shiva Thapa and Manoj Kumar during a meeting of the national observers in New Delhi.
Mary Kom is just a couple of months shy of turning 36 but said she isn't going to slow down either at home or inside the ring.
The haul of 64 medals at the Commonwealth Games, in July-August, which included 15 gold, should act as the ideal springboard for the Indian contingent to better its medal tally at Guangzhou, China, four years ago.
This was due to the fact that they had already won the Khel Ratna, the country's highest sporting honour.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday.
Every medal is a story of struggle, says the indomitable M C Mary Kom, who considers her fifth Asian Championship gold medal special as it came despite the many roles she has had to play outside the ring in the past one year.
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