guwahati from lifting lpg cylinders to working in the paddy fields to maintain fitness during the lockdown before a bout of covid19 and a subsequent second wave derailed her tokyo preparations lovlina borgohain has been a fighter in the truest sense her indomitable spirit has finally paid off as the assam pugilist became only the third indian boxer to ensure a medal at the olympic gameshailing from a remote baromukhia village in upper assams golaghat district lovlina has punched out numerous odds including ageold patriarchy to take on the fiercest of opponents in the ring as the smiling assassin herself terms bhoi asile kintu bhoi korile medal nahe you can win medals only if you can overcome the fear that itself speaks volumes of the lanky 511 boxers grit and determinationon friday lovlina scripted history by assuring indias second medal at the ongoing tokyo olympics she outpunched former world champion chen nienchin of chinese taipei in the quarterfinal of the womens welterweight category to storm into the semifinals in boxing atleast a bronze medal is assured once a pugilist enters the semifinalsi dont take the pressure i know a billion indians are praying for me i am happy i could give them another olympic medal lovlina said during an interaction after her boutlovlina is only the third indian after mary kom and vijender singh to win a boxing medal at the olympicsindian womens boxing coach ali qamar is a delighted man especially after the morale crushing loss of mc mary kom on thursday emphatic win for the entire contingent after mary koms loss the morale was low but lovlinas medal has injected us with a new energy ali told toi from tokyoshe used her height very well her height is her biggest strength as no other boxer in her category is as tall as her it was also a mental battle for her because she has gone through a lot in the past 1 year we want her to win the gold added qamarroadblocks before tokyolovlina who is assams first female boxer to the olympics hasnt had the most perfect preparation for the games in february this year lovlina had to take a break from the national camp and fly down to kolkata as her mother mamoni borgohain underwent a kidney transplanton return to the army sports institute pune she spent sleepless nights with the only hope of getting her mothers swift recovery she had bravely told toi this is just a phase life is all about ups and downs brother i am sure this will make me stronger but i am happy i could be with maa mother for a few days during the tough periodeven though the 23yearold is in tokyo playing her maiden olympics she keeps a tab on her ailing mother she calls me twice every day to ask about her mother lovlinas father tiken boroghain told toi on friday morningbefore going to tokyo she promised her mother that she would return with a medal and