India's boxing queen Mary Kom is mustering the grit and power to make one last bid for an Olympic gold medal in Tokyo at the age of 38.
Kom's rags-to-riches story became the stuff of legend when she won a bronze medal at the 2012 London Games, the first time women's boxing was an Olympic event.
A Bollywood movie - Mary Kom - was made of her life in 2014 with Priyanka Chopra in the lead role and fans kept the faith even when she failed to win a place at the 2016 Rio Games.
"Magnificent Mary", as the national treasure is known, repaid them when she won a record sixth world title in 2018.
Now she will be India's flag bearer along with men's hockey captain Manpreet Singh at the Tokyo opening ceremony before she competes in the 51kg flyweight competition.
Kom knows this will be the last roll of the dice, but is determined.
"Will step into the ring to fight for the gold, to make us all proud again," Kom, a mother of four, said on Twitter.
"Tokyo will be my last Olympics," she told the Olympic Channel. "Age matters here. I am 38 now, going on 39. Four more years is a long time."
Kom said she was "pretty sure I won't be allowed to even if I am willing to carry on till Paris 2024".
Girls can fight
Kom will face fierce competition from Turkish favourite Buse Naz Cakiroglu - who beat Kom in the world championship semi-finals in 2019 - but India is still willing on its darling.
Vijender Singh, a boxing bronze medallist at the 2008 Beijing Games, is confident Kom will succeed.
"India's sporting fraternity is with her. She has an Olympic medal to her name and has lots of experience," Vijender said.
Akhil Kumar, who won gold at the 2006 Commonwealth Games, predicts two boxing medals for India in Tokyo, with Kom winning one of them.
Kom, who hails from a poor village in the northeastern state of Manipur, won a silver at the inaugural women's world championships in 2001, kickstarting her international career.
She went on to win gold at each of the next five world championships and clinched her sixth title in 2018.
The diminutive fighter - only 1.58 metres tall - broke gender stereotypes just by breaking into the male-dominated sport and then achieved international success while managing her role as a mother.
Kom was the star of the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony in Delhi in 2010 even though women's boxing was still excluded.
The veteran boxer said the Olympics had changed her career trajectory.
"Becoming an Olympian and winning the bronze changed my life too," she said. "It also inspired many women to take up sport, especially boxing. I feel proud.
"I want more girls to come out and fight. I hope there are no restrictions on them to come out and fight for themselves and their country."
Kom became the first Indian woman boxer to win a gold medal at the Asian Games, in 2014, and also triumphed at the 2018 Commonwealth Games.
She moved from her preferred 48kg category to 51kg in pursuit of Olympic glory - there were just three weight divisions in women's boxing in 2012.
In London, just 12 boxers took part in the flyweight event but the competition has intensified and there are five rounds in Tokyo.
Kom has her work cut out but she has the weight of a nation behind her.
The bio
Favourite book: The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Favourite travel destination: Maldives and south of France
Favourite pastime: Family and friends, meditation, discovering new cuisines
Favourite Movie: Joker (2019). I didn’t like it while I was watching it but then afterwards I loved it. I loved the psychology behind it.
Favourite Author: My father for sure
Favourite Artist: Damien Hurst
If you go...
Fly from Dubai or Abu Dhabi to Chiang Mai in Thailand, via Bangkok, before taking a five-hour bus ride across the Laos border to Huay Xai. The land border crossing at Huay Xai is a well-trodden route, meaning entry is swift, though travellers should be aware of visa requirements for both countries.
Flights from Dubai start at Dh4,000 return with Emirates, while Etihad flights from Abu Dhabi start at Dh2,000. Local buses can be booked in Chiang Mai from around Dh50
Paatal Lok season two
Directors: Avinash Arun, Prosit Roy
Stars: Jaideep Ahlawat, Ishwak Singh, Lc Sekhose, Merenla Imsong
Rating: 4.5/5
The specs: 2017 Ford F-150 Raptor
Price, base / as tested Dh220,000 / Dh320,000
Engine 3.5L V6
Transmission 10-speed automatic
Power 421hp @ 6,000rpm
Torque 678Nm @ 3,750rpm
Fuel economy, combined 14.1L / 100km
SUNDAY'S ABU DHABI T10 MATCHES
Northern Warriors v Team Abu Dhabi, 3.30pm
Bangla Tigers v Karnataka Tuskers, 5.45pm
Qalandars v Maratha Arabians, 8pm
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The Gentlemen
Director: Guy Ritchie
Stars: Colin Farrell, Hugh Grant
Three out of five stars
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ESSENTIALS
The flights
Emirates flies from Dubai to Phnom Penh via Yangon from Dh2,700 return including taxes. Cambodia Bayon Airlines and Cambodia Angkor Air offer return flights from Phnom Penh to Siem Reap from Dh250 return including taxes. The flight takes about 45 minutes.
The hotels
Rooms at the Raffles Le Royal in Phnom Penh cost from $225 (Dh826) per night including taxes. Rooms at the Grand Hotel d'Angkor cost from $261 (Dh960) per night including taxes.
The tours
A cyclo architecture tour of Phnom Penh costs from $20 (Dh75) per person for about three hours, with Khmer Architecture Tours. Tailor-made tours of all of Cambodia, or sites like Angkor alone, can be arranged by About Asia Travel. Emirates Holidays also offers packages.
Stage result
1. Pascal Ackermann (GER) Bora-Hansgrohe, in 3:29.09
2. Caleb Ewan (AUS) Lotto-Soudal
3. Rudy Barbier (FRA) Israel Start-Up Nation
4. Dylan Groenewegen (NED) Jumbo-Visma
5. Luka Mezgec (SLO) Mitchelton-Scott
6. Alberto Dainese (ITA) Sunweb
7. Jakub Mareczko (ITA) CCC
8. Max Walscheid (GER) NTT
9. José Rojas (ESP) Movistar
10. Andrea Vendrame (ITA) Ag2r La Mondiale, all at same time
MATCH INFO
Real Madrid 2
Vinicius Junior (71') Mariano (90 2')
Barcelona 0
PRO BASH
Thursday’s fixtures
6pm: Hyderabad Nawabs v Pakhtoon Warriors
10pm: Lahore Sikandars v Pakhtoon Blasters
Teams
Chennai Knights, Lahore Sikandars, Pakhtoon Blasters, Abu Dhabi Stars, Abu Dhabi Dragons, Pakhtoon Warriors and Hyderabad Nawabs.
Squad rules
All teams consist of 15-player squads that include those contracted in the diamond (3), platinum (2) and gold (2) categories, plus eight free to sign team members.
Tournament rules
The matches are of 25 over-a-side with an 8-over power play in which only two fielders allowed outside the 30-yard circle. Teams play in a single round robin league followed by the semi-finals and final. The league toppers will feature in the semi-final eliminator.
THE SPECS
Engine: 6.0-litre, twin-turbocharged W12
Transmission: eight-speed automatic
Power: 626bhp
Torque: 900Nm
Price: Dh1,050,000
On sale: now
