Winning medal at Paris Olympics is ultimate goal: Nikhat Zareen

Hyderabad: Telangana boxer Nikhat Zareen is on a roll. Starting her campaign this year with national gold and winning her second medal at the prestigious Strandja Memorial Boxing tournament, she extended her run with a fine show at the World Championships. She then capped the sensational run with a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games […]

Hyderabad: Telangana boxer Nikhat Zareen is on a roll. Starting her campaign this year with national gold and winning her second medal at the prestigious Strandja Memorial Boxing tournament, she extended her run with a fine show at the World Championships. She then capped the sensational run with a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.

Speaking exclusively to Telangana Today on her return to the city, the 26-year-old boxer said she will continue to work hard to win medals for the country. “I am very happy to win gold for the country in the Commonwealth Games. But changing the weight category is the toughest challenge. I am a big foodie and I have to lose two kgs (to compete in the 50kg category) for the Games. After the World championship, I wanted to celebrate my win. But I had to give trials for CWG. There was no time.”

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“My big sacrifice to lose weight was to give up my favourite foot biryani. The first thing I did after returning from CWG was to come home and have biryani made by my mother” she said. She also rued that she missed the chance of a hat-trick of titles with the Asian Games postponed to next year. “Yes, I would have won a hat-trick. I qualified for Asian Games but it was postponed. I will keep working hard to get selected for the Asian Games again.”

Was she under any pressure entering the Commonwealth Games as reigning world champion? “I was not under pressure. After the world championship, there were a lot of expectations from me, which was good. More than anyone, I have a lot of expectations from myself. I was going there as a world champion and I have to perform like one. And I am glad I did that.”

Speaking about her next target, Nikhat said, “Paris Olympics is the ultimate goal. But I want to focus on each tournament that comes my way. But the journey has already started for the Paris Olympics when I started preparing for the national championship,” she revealed.

At 26, Nikhat is already a role model for many youngsters in the country and she wants the youngsters to keep working hard. “Since childhood, I have looked up to Mohammed Ali and Mary Kom. When young kids look up to me, I want to deliver a good message and encourage them. I came from a small town where there were no facilities for sports or women in sports. When I can achieve anything anyone can achieve. When I started, I never thought I would be world champion and CWG champion. I always believed I had to give my hundred per cent. When you do that, you will win. I want to tell the youngsters to keep working hard and believe in yourself.”

Nikhat also dedicated the gold to her mother saying that the support from the family and people of the country will motivate her to do well in the future. “From my side, I will leave no stone unturned to win medals for the country,” she signed off.