In 2008, the last time an Asian city (Beijing) hosted the Olympics, had Pooja Rani been told she would one day compete with the very best at the Games, she would have laughed it off.
The middle-weight boxer, who has qualified for the Tokyo Olympics in the 75kg category, initially had no interest in boxing — or in any other sport, for that matter. Pooja took to boxing when she was 18 years of age. That too quite by chance.
“To be honest, sport did not interest me. Not boxing, not anything else,” Pooja told The Telegraph from her home in Bhiwani, Haryana, where she has just finished serving the mandatory two-week self-isolation after returning from the Asia-Oceania Boxing qualifiers in Amman, Jordan.
“In college, given my height (1.70m), I was selected to take part in an inter-college competition and ended up with a silver! That was the first time I had taken part in boxing and without any preparation as such. It kindled an interest in me for the sport.”
Soon after, at the Captain Hawa Singh Boxing Academy, she started honing her skills and in only a few months won a gold at the Youth State Championships, followed by a silver at the Youth Nationals.
However, it was not all smooth sailing for Pooja thereafter. The first obstacle came in the form of her father, who was then with Haryana police.
“My dad was vehemently against my becoming a pugilist. ‘Any other sport but not boxing’, he insisted. ‘Why not some other sport? Why not maybe basketball?’ he kept telling me. He was sure I would injure myself and get disfigured. ‘Boxing toh gundey log karte hain (Boxing is for goons)’, he kept telling me.
“Gradually, as I started winning tournaments, my dad’s attitude started to change. In the long run, he became my staunchest supporter,” said the six-time national champion.
The next big challenge in her life came in 2016, when, while bursting crackers during Diwali, she severely burnt her right hand.
“My right hand got burnt very badly while bursting patakhas and it took me five to six months to recover fully. After that, as I started practising again, I injured my other shoulder, as I was putting too much pressure on that side.
“It took me a year to recover. I had stopped believing that I would be able to make a mark on the world stage and was mentally quite down.
“During my period of injury, Lakshya Sports, the Pune-based sports NGO which has been supporting me for the past eight years, helped me. They paid for my treatment and hired a physio for me. My mental conditioning coach, Dr Swarop Savanur, counselled me through it,” she recalls.
The 29-year-old also owes a lot to physiotherapist and sports scientist Dr Nikhil Latey.
“Pooja had some old injuries which hadn’t healed properly. She had some weaknesses and muscle imbalances which had to be corrected. Such things don’t matter to an ordinary athlete, perhaps, but to a top level athlete it makes a lot of difference,” Latey said.
Currently with her family, the 2014 Asian Games bronze medallist plans to ease back into training shortly.
And no, she will not let the postponement of the Olympics bother her. She is determined to use that extra time to her advantage.