How India's boxing legend Mary Kom inspired Pakistan's 1st female CWG medallist
Across the border in Pakistan, a 10-year-old Fatima Zahra watched the 2014 Bollywood film Mary Kom and found in the Indian icon a sporting hero she could call her own. There were few Pakistani women boxers for Fatima to look up to in those early…
There were few Pakistani women boxers for Fatima to look up to in those early years. Mary Kom became her inspiration instead.
More than the six world titles, Olympic bronze and gold medals at the Asian Games and Commonwealth Games, it was Mary Kom's journey that stayed with her. Born into a poor farming family in rural Manipur, Mary Kom had to negotiate financial hardship, social.
What Happened
Her path to the top was built on defiance, secretly pursuing the sport in her younger days, juggling training with work on the fields, and refusing to let circumstances dictate her future. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Fatima.
Across the border in Pakistan, a 10-year-old Fatima Zahra watched the 2014 Bollywood film Mary Kom and found in the Indian icon a sporting hero she could call her own.
The 22-year-old won bronze in the women's 60kg category at the Commonwealth Games, becoming the first Pakistani woman boxer to stand on the Games podium.
Mary Kom once became that example for a young girl growing up across the border.
Key Details
What began as opposition at home slowly changed as her family came to accept and support her ambitions. On Friday, Fatima completed a journey that Mary Kom had unknowingly helped set in motion.
I joined boxing, trained and worked hard.
She wants more Pakistani girls to see sport as an option, to question the stereotypes that keep them tied to traditional household roles and to believe that stepping into a boxing ring — or.
But Fatima hopes its impact will stretch well beyond the record books.
Why It Matters
And it was Kom's biopic that inspired her to take up the sport. I used to watch the film made on her life.
However, now Fatima says that her family remains more tense than her when she enters the boxing ring.
My basic coach taught me everything," she said."My family was against boxing.
What Reports Say
Coverage of the story so far points to:
Continued reporting by India Today as more details emerge
