Mary Kom Biography

BIRTH: March 1, 1983, Manipur, India

Mary Kom Biography : Life, Career, Facts

Mary Kom is a five-time World Boxing Champion and the only boxer to have won a medal in each one of the seven world championships. She is famously known as “Magnificent Mary” and “MC Mary Kom”.

Mary Kom was born on March 1, 1983 in Manipur, India to Mangte Tonpa Kom and Mangte Akham Kom. They were a family of poor farmers. Due to her family’s financial condition, Mary had to work hard from a very young age. She used to work on the farms and also attended Loktak Christian Model High School. As the eldest of four siblings, she also had to take care of her younger siblings.

For her early education, Mary went to Loktak Christian Model High School and later moved to St. Xavier Catholic School. But Mary only studied there until the eighth grade, always more interested in sports than academics. She participated in all types of sports in school except for boxing, ironically. Mary took up boxing after getting inspired by the famous Manipuri boxer, Dingko Singh. He was a great athlete who won gold at the Asian Games in 1998. When Mary started boxing, she kept it a secret from her family. The reason being that boxing was not considered an appropriate sport for women and would potentially reduce her chances of finding a good groom.

To receive proper training, Kom decided to move to Imphal, in 1998, at the age of fifteen. She joined the Sports Academy in Imphal and there she met the state coach, Narjit Singh.

Kom officially started her boxing career in 2000. She won the Women’s Boxing Championship in Manipur and the regional competition in West Bengal. After she won many matches in her motherland, she started to participate at the international level. At the age of eighteen, Kom obtained a silver medal in her first AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championship in the U.S. In 2002, she won a gold medal at the second AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championship in Turkey. The same year Kom won a gold medal at the Witch Cup in Hungary. In 2003, Kom won gold at the 2003 Asian Boxing Championship in Hissar. The India government honored her with the Arjuna Award the same year. Kom showed her passion and talent for boxing when she secured a total of five consecutive National Championships from 2000 to 2005. She won the AIBA world boxing championship thrice, in 2002, 2005 and 2006.

Kom took a year-long break from boxing to fulfill her family responsibilities. After she gained her family’s support, she returned to boxing again in 2008. Kom trained day and night to rebuild her stamina and strength. She made a comeback in full form in the 2008 Asian Women’s Boxing Championship, winning silver. She won her fourth gold at the AIBA Women’s World Boxing Championship in China. In 2009, she won gold again at the Asian Indoor Games in Vietnam. In 2010, she earned her fifth consecutive gold in the AIBA Women’s Boxing competition and one in the Asian Women’s boxing championships in Kazakhstan.

2012 was a historic year, for both Kom and her home country India. Kom became the first Indian woman to represent India in boxing at the Olympics. She won the bronze medal and became the third Indian woman to win an individual medal at the Olympics. Another major feat by Kom was winning the gold medal in the 2014 Incheon Asian Games. For her significant contribution to sports, she was awarded the Padma Shri in 2006. And in 2013 she received the third highest civilian award of India, the Padma Bhushan.

Kom has opened many doors for women in India and encouraged them to achieve their dreams. She started an academy in Manipur that teaches self-defense to young children. Mary co-authored her autobiography, Unbreakable, documenting her life struggles and how she rose to success. The book was published by Harper Collins in 2013. In 2014 a biopic of Kom’s life, Mary Kom, was released starring Priyanka Chopra. Kom strongly supports animal rights and does voluntary work for PETA India.

Mary married K Onler Kom in 2005 after dating him for four years. Onler first met Mary in New Delhi when she was on her way to the National Games. They are now the proud parents of three sons.