On July 30, Lovlina Borgohain qualified for the semifinals of the Women’s welterweight class, ensuring India an Olympics medal. In the quarterfinals in Tokyo, she beat Chen Nien-chin of Chinese Taipei.

On August 4, she will face Busenaz Surmeneli of Turkey in the semi-finals. The unique tall pugilist has received a lot of praise from around the country. Sandhya Gurung, Lovlina’s coach in Gangtok, Sikkim, was all praise for her accomplishment, praising how she has matured from a reluctant sparrer to now a Lion in the ring.

“She was a tall, quiet girl, but her height advantage drew Assam‘s notice at sub-junior camp.” She was a little hesitant while sparring, but we pushed her to overcome her anxiety. Her goal has always been to compete in the Olympics since she won the sub-junior world title in 2013. “She was originally competing in the 75 kg weight class, but she subsequently dropped to 69 kg in order to compete in the Olympics,” Gurung told EastMojo.

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Sandhya Gurung, a former Sikkim fighter who overcame disability to become a national-level boxer, is now a coach to perhaps one of the finest discoveries in Indian boxing history. Sandhya Gurung is from the Gangtok district of Burtuk.

She had always been interested in sports, but she never imagined it would be boxing. “I got into boxing when former Olympian Jas Lal Pradhan pushed it in Sikkim.” Previously, boxing was not methodical. I was paralysed for a long period. As a result, it was a struggle. Women’s boxing became popular in 1999, and I began competing in the 68 kg weight class in 2000 out of curiosity. “My last game was in 2008, and I won a gold medal,” she explained.

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Sikkim’s Sports Department offered her a government position in 2008, with the choice of being a boxing official or a coach. “Official was seasonal, but the coach meant being in the game on a regular basis.” The sports department encouraged me to pursue a coach’s diploma, which I did, but before I finished the diploma, I was chosen as a coach for the national camp. “When our current Chief Minister Prem Singh Golay was sports minister, he encouraged me to become a coach,” Gurung stated. Gurung has been a coach since 2010.

Recalling Lovlina as a tall, timid child she met at the sub-junior camp in 2012, Gurung said she and Lovlina struck up a friendship that led to regular mentoring in 2016 at the National Camp in Delhi. “When she became a senior in November 2016, she came to me with a training request.” I couldn’t refuse. My message to mentor her was that there was no excuse for anything in training, that she should treat me as a friend or father, and she has been serious in her game and diligent in her training. “She says no in training,” Gurung said.

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“However, at large competitions, she would have cold feet, but I would remind her that she is a Lion, ruler of the jungle.” Even though we are not together today, I have been virtually assisting her in the Olympics with video chats and lengthy talks. “We attempt to analyse what the adversary has in terms of strengths and weaknesses right now,” Gurung says.

Even though they are thousands of miles away, the coach and the pugilist communicate frequently. “Our collaboration was always positive, which is why we were successful.” We were overjoyed when she qualified for the Olympics. I informed her then that this was not the goal; we wanted to make the Olympic finals. Finally, she attempted to persuade me to accompany her to Tokyo. But I advised her to concentrate on the game. We may have had communication issues in the past. However, we now have technology at our disposal. We can talk about techniques over the phone and even train together. But now that we have video conversations, she calls me frequently. She has been continually in (Tokyo) since arriving.”

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“Her recent battle was the hardest one, quarterfinals are vital for medal qualifying,” Gurung said of the latest bout. Even though we couldn’t communicate after her victory last night, she was clearly moved. Yesterday, I felt a new kind of satisfaction when I witnessed her win Olympic gold.”

Gurung describes Lovlina as “a really lovely girl who concerned about her house and family in addition to her boxing game.” Sandhya divides her time between her home in Sikkim and the National Camp in Delhi. “I train many in Sikkim, and when I come here, I aim to bring more from Sikkim, especially ladies,” Gurung continued.