When Mary Kom pummelled her rival boxer, Ukraine’s Hanna Okhota, into submission on Saturday, she cried and cried — her tears mingling with the sweat of victory. It was an astounding personal achievement: winning a historic sixth gold in the World Championships. An accomplishment that stands in splendid isolation because no woman in the world has ever reached this milestone. At 36, Kom is a living legend. But on Saturday what mattered to her was the gift to her country. Draped in Tricolour, the incredible Manipuri woman dedicated her gold “to the nation and my countrymen”. Flush with success, Kom refuses to relent, displaying the same ardour that propelled her through life’s many trials and tribulations. In this finest hour, instead of pausing to savour success, she talks about her defeat in the Rio Olympics and how it still rankles her.
The mother of three has already set her eyes on making a mark in Tokyo Olympics. A difficult challenge, to put it mildly, Kom will be punching much above her weight, so to speak, at an age when retirement is an honourable option. Should Kom exercise caution as gray-haired wisdom dictates? After all, discretion is a better part of valour when one is pitted against the young and the mighty. One quits when one is at the summit of her career to ensure a berth in the hall of fame. For sporting greats, knowing when to retire is the toughest call. It’s like a double-edged sword: Quitting early would mean giving up the much-coveted position without a fight. Dragging on in search of magic can end up attracting ridicule from fans. Many a great had succumbed to the temptation of prolonging a career way past the heyday.
How well a sportsperson retires from the game depends on how much their identity is embedded in their vocation. It’s akin to a film star’s struggle to come to grips with his/her age and declining popularity at the box office. Boxer Rocky Marciano hung up his gloves when he was the undefeated heavyweight champion. However, there are stories of ignominy, of stars losing their shine: In 2002 when Mike Tyson lost the world heavyweight title again when Lennox Lewis knocked him out, he should have retired from professional boxing. Instead he waited for another four years and ended up being trounced in back-to-back matches in 2006.
Kom, however, is a unique case study. Her defeats had made her even stronger. Even after being written off several times in a career spanning almost two decades, she had proven her critics wrong with her performances. Kom has less than two years to train for the Olympics. She would be nearing 38 then. She has to jump to the higher 51kg category to qualify for the 2020 Olympics. Prior to that she has the World Championships in Russia in 2019 as well as the continental championships. These should give her a fair idea of what she would be up against in the Olympics. One hopes she makes the country proud with her final dream: Winning a gold in the Olympics.
