Magnificent Mary Kom goes down fighting in Olympic pre-quarters
Tokyo, July 29: Six-time world champion M C Mary Kom's (51kg) pursuit of a second Olympic medal ended in the pre-quarterfinals of the Tokyo Games as she went down to 2016 edition's bronze-medallist Ingrit Valencia in a fiercely-fought showdown here on Thursday.
The 38-year-old legend, who is a multiple-time Asian champion and a bronze-winner from the 2012 London olympics, lost 2-3 to the Colombian, giving it her all in what would now be her final Olympic bout.
Mary Kom had tears in her eyes and a wide smile on her face when the referee raised Valencia's hand at the end of the bout, exhausted after the intense clash.
The way Valencia rushed in when the first bell rang, it was quite obvious that the bout would be high voltage and it was exactly how it turned out to be.
The two were attacking each other from word go and Valencia grabbed the upper-hand when she clinched the opening round 4-1.
The Manipuri veteran fought back to claim the second and the third round by 2-3 margins but the slender edge that Valencia took in the opening round tilted the final scores in her favour.
The Indian landed her right hooks to perfection in both the second and the third round.
The Indian had earlier beaten Valencia in the 2019 world championship quarterfinals and it was the Colombian's first career win over the icon.
Like Mary Kom, the 32-year-old Valencia is a trailblazer for her country.
She is the first female boxer to have represented Colombia at the Olympic Games, as well as the nation's first female boxer to win an Olympic medal.
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West Asia conflict: Kerala postpones SSLC, Higher Secondary exams in Gulf region
Thiruvananthapuram (PTI): Kerala General Education Minister V Sivankutty on Monday announced the postponement of the SSLC and Higher Secondary examinations scheduled for this week in the Gulf region, in view of the escalating tensions in West Asia.
Addressing a press conference here, the minister said the security situation in the gulf, has made conducting the public exams impossible.
Against this backdrop, the government has decided to postpone the Secondary School Leaving Certificate (SSLC) examination scheduled for March 5 in the Gulf region, he said.
The Higher Secondary examinations slated for March 5, 6 and 7 in the region have also been deferred, Sivankutty added.
"The revised dates for the postponed examinations will be announced later," the Minister said.
He noted that some students, both in the Gulf countries and in Kerala, are anxious that they may not be able to reach their examination centres and could miss their exams due to the prevailing situation.
The General Education Department stands with the students in this matter, Sivankutty said.
Students who are unable to appear for the examinations are advised to submit applications at the earliest to the Director of General Education through their respective headmasters or principals, he said.
The department will examine the merit of each application and take a favourable decision in the interest of the students, the Minister added.
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