Mary Kom won bronze at the 2012 London Olympics and has won gold at the boxing World Championships for a record six times.
Mary Kom. (File Photo: IANS)
India ace pugilist Mary Kom, who on Saturday was conferred with the prestigious Padma Vibhushan award — second highest civil honour in India, said that she dreams of winning the Bharat Ratna — country’s highest civil honour.
“It is a dream to win the Bharat Ratna. With this award (Padma Vibhushan) I will now be inspired to do even better with the thought that I can win the Bharat Ratna,” Mary Kom, told reporters as quoted by PTI.
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“Sachin Tendulkar is the only sportsperson to have won it and I hope to become the second one and the first woman. I want to emulate Tendulkar and I get inspiration from him,” she added.
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Mary Kom won bronze at the 2012 London Olympics and has won gold at the boxing World Championships for a record six times. She has won a total of eight medals at the World Championships, the most recent of which came in October 2019 in Ulan Ude, Russia.
For now, the 36-year-old is now looking to qualify for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
“My immediate target is to first qualify for Olympics and then I will think about the colour of the medal. If I qualify and win a gold in Tokyo I hope to get the Bharat Ratna. To be honoured with Bharat Ratna will be the pinnacle of achievement and recognition for not only a sportsperson but also for any Indian,” said Mary Kom.
(With agency inputs)
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