Mary Kom questions protest rule at World Championships
New Delhi: Six-time world champion M C Mary Kom on Tuesday questioned the rationale behind the rule which did not allow her to lodge a protest after her semifinal loss in the recent World Championships.
"Our protest was not considered as it was a 1-4 verdict. I don't know what this rule is, that you cannot file an appeal if it is 1-4," Mary Kom said on the sidelines of a felicitation function by the Sports Ministry.
"If deserving winners are made to lose, it does not do any good to the sport," said the 36-year-old who won her maiden 51kg medal, a bronze, in the just-concluded World Championships in Russia.
After Mary Kom lost her semifinals bout 1-4 to Busenaz Cakiroglu of Turkey, India lodged a protest but it was turned down by the International Boxing Association's (AIBA) technical committee.
The rules mandate that the decision has to be either 3-2 or 3-1 for an appeal to be even accepted for consideration.
Asked if there was any bias against her in the decision, she said, "Of course, there was something fishy but I don't know what exactly is that."
"I was sad and shocked but I could not do anything," said the brand ambassador of the AIBA.
Just after the semifinal loss, she had said that it was an unacceptable result and could never imagine something like that would happen to her.
Mary Kom said she was in the best shape during the World Championships and her performance has renewed her confidence that she can do better at the Tokyo Olympics.
"Despite the semifinal loss, the World Championship was a good preparation for the road ahead. I was in the best shape and I found the right balance for 51kg category in this World Championship. This has given me confidence that I can do much better in Olympics," she added.
Manju Rani, who won a silver in 48kg, and other bronze winners Jamuna Boro (54kg) and Lovlina Borgohain (69kg) were also felicitated.
Manju's category is not included in the Tokyo Olympics and she said she "will jump weight if 48kg is not there in the 2024 Olympics."
"Olympics is my target, let us see," said the 20-year-old Haryana boxer who won the silver in her debut World Championships.
"I played kabaddi initially but found that I have no future in that because the performance of any member can affect the whole team. In individual sport, it is all your performance that counts," she said.
"I took up to boxing and my uncle became my coach. He does not know much about boxing and he had to learn himself first before teaching me."
She did not get selection in the team for Nationals from her home state of Haryana. So, she represented Punjab in the Nationals and won a gold to be selected for the national camp.
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Sharad Pawar praised RSS after seeing how it burst fake narrative balloon of LS polls: Fadnavis
Nagpur, Jan 10: Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Friday said NCP (SP) chief Sharad Pawar praised the RSS after realising how the outfit managed to overcome the fake narrative spread by the opposition in the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
The opposition had claimed BJP wanted to win 400 seats to change the Constitution and end reservations, a narrative which BJP leaders later claimed hit the party hard.
On Pawar praising the RSS recently, the CM said the MVA was successful in creating a fake narrative during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.
"When assembly polls were approaching, many people from diverse fields who are inspired by the RSS played their role and burst the balloon of this fake narrative. Sharad Pawar saheb is very intelligent. He would have certainly studied this aspect. He realised that this (RSS) is not a regular political power but a nationalist power. In any competition it is good to praise others," he added.
That is why Pawar may have praised the RSS, Fadnavis said.
Speaking at an interaction with senior editor Vivek Ghalsasi at Late Vilasji Fadnis Jivhala programme here, Fadnavis also said he had asked for organisational work when Eknath Shinde was made chief minister in June 2022, but senior leaders asked him to join the government.
He also said Prime Minister Narendra Modi asked him not to behave like an extra-constitutional authority in the government.
He said the decision to become deputy chief minister on the command of the party leadership earned him a lot of praise from the cadre.
After the massive mandate the ruling alliance received in the 2024 assembly polls, Fadnavis said people and party workers would not have been happy if the CM was not from the BJP.
Shinde himself agreed within minutes that the CM must be from the BJP, which itself got 132 seats and was close to a majority of its own in the 288-member assembly, he added.
On Shiv Sena (UBT) chief Uddhav Thackeray meeting him during the winter sessions of the legislature in Nagpur, Fadnavis said he had announced he would not indulge in politics of revenge after becoming CM and all leaders responded positively to it.
On chances of the NCP (SP) and NCP coming closer or reuniting, Fadnavis said, "If you see the developments that took place from 2019 to 2024, I realised never say never and anything can happen. Uddhav Thackeray goes to some other party and Ajit Pawar comes to us. In politics anything can happen though I am not saying this should happen."
He praised BJP leader Arun Gujarati from whom he learnt patience, which he claimed was an important quality in politics along with the ability to take criticism.
In a lighter vein, he said, "I only get angry when I am hungry. If you see me angry then give me something to eat and my anger will go away."
