Mary Kom confident, but not taking Olympic gold for granted

u00a0 Mary Kom is easily India39s best bet to win a gold medal at the London Olympics but the fivetime world boxing champion is not taking things for granted She knows that the transition from the 48kg weight category to 51 kg has its pitfalls A game trier she says will certainly make a fight out of it u00a0 A mother of two the 29yearold says that the Olympics will be tough as she has powerful opponents to box against in her new weight category u00a0 After switching to her new weight category Mary Kom won the gold at the 2010 Guangzhou Asian Games and that she says has given her enormous confidence and that she is now more comfortable fighting in the 51 kg division u00a0 u00a0 Mary Kom u00a0 quotI am comfortable in both 48 and 51 kg categories The Olympics does not have the 48 kg and so I had to perforce change to 51 The boxers in 51kg category are bigger taller and stronger At first it was a little difficult but with time I got used to it Fighting in the new category at the Asian Games has given me a lot of confidence and now my target is to do well at the World Championships as wellquot Mary Kom said u00a0 Nothing came for Mary Kom for the asking She had to struggle for everything right from taking to boxing to get India39s highest sporting honour Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna She is a sporting icon of the country yet she feels she still does not get the recognition she deserves despite winning five gold and a medal at each of the six world championships and winning the Asian championships four times u00a0 Not many care to refer her by her full name Mangte Chungneijang MC Mary Kom just like few may remember her idol and inspiration fellowManipuri boxer Dingko Singh who rose and went down like a meteor u00a0 The May 920 World Championship in Qinhuangdao China offers the Indian boxers their only chance to qualify for the London Games Mary Kom will not only spearhead the Indian challenge but will also be chasing her record sixth world title and first in her new weight category u00a0 quotI did a lot of hardwork I have worked on my weaknesses and tried to sort out some of the glitches over the past year This year the World Championships will be different I like taking up new challenges and that is my driving forcequot she said u00a0 Mary Kom attributes her success to British trainer Charles Atkinson The 70yearold was a guiding force behind the rise of Thai male boxers in the 1980s u00a0 quotIt has been about a year since I have been training with Atkinson He has made a huge difference to my fighting style We concentrated on my strength guard and combination and that reflected in my performance during the Asian Championships where opponents found it hard to get through my defencequot she said u00a0 Mary Kom said Atkinson has helped her a lot in every aspect of boxing u00a0 quotHis tips have helped me to improve my attack and counterattack tremendously These may be subtle changes but this is where the difference between an Indian coach and a foreign lies He has put me through a lot of innovative movements and boxingquot she said u00a0 Mary Kom who recently beat Chinese opponent Ren Cancan to win a gold medal at the sixth Asian Women39s Boxing Championship thanked her sponsors Olympic Gold Quest and the sports ministry for all the support u00a0 quotWinning the Asian Games gold medal was a great achievement for me My sponsors and the sports ministry helped me a lot They provided me with all the training facilities and I want to thank them for thatquot Mary Kom said u00a0 Mary Kom however said more government support is needed to boost Olympic sports in India u00a0 quotThe sports ministry has done a lot to support the athletes but if India has to become a major force at the Olympics more needs to be done I think they have realised that a lot more is needed to be done by way of providing greater facilities for athletes to train if India has to produce world beatersquot she said u00a0 Mary Kom hopes that India will do well at the London Olympics and expects the athletes to get a rich haul of medals u00a0 quotThis year in London I am expecting more gold medals as we have a chance of winning a medal in every weight categoryquot she singed offu00a0