Jaismine shows her empathetic side

Vinayak Padmadeo

New Delhi, June 5

Elite athletes by character have a selfish trait in them. Many coaches have cited this trait as the defining feature that differentiates the ones who reach the top from those who fall short despite their skills. Jaismine Lamboria is an exception, though. Apart from being skilful, she also has empathy for her fellow athletes.

In a merry-go-round just before the Olympics qualification tournament in Bangkok, Jaismine was told to switch her weight class from 60kg to 57kg. The reason was that Parveen Hooda was suspended for 22 months for whereabouts failure of the anti-doping rules and the Paris Olympics quota in the weight class had to be surrendered. Although the change in weight class did not affect the Bhiwani boxer that much, the decision struck a nerve as she felt bad for Parveen.

“We were all aware when the case (about whereabouts) was on. I was praying for Parveen to somehow dodge the suspension and represent India at Paris as she had earned it,” Jaismine told The Tribune.

“I was told three or four days before (the departure) that I was to contest in the 57kg category. I was preparing and looking forward to my competition and thinking about the World Championships as well and then I was told about this switch,” she added.

For someone whose weight oscillates between 57kg and 59kg during training, this switch was not a big bother for the tall boxer who comes from a family of boxers.

“My weight stays around 59kg and after sparring and training I tend to lose a kilo and a half so the switch was not that hard for me. Besides, I was in training, so it did not affect me at all,” the 22-year-old said.

As she basks in the familiar setting of her home in Bhiwani, the boxer has already set her mind on making a few corrections in her all-round play. At the qualifiers, where she sailed past Azerbaijan’s Mahsati Hamzayeva Aghamaliyeva and Switzerland’s Ana Milisic with successive 5-0 wins before beating Mali’s Marine Camara by the same margin in the quarterfinals to punch her Paris ticket, the coaches made a few suggestions.

“Coach (CA) Kuttappa wants me to attack more. My game is all about counterattacks, he wants me to attack. Besides, he wants me to work on punch impacts also,” she said.

Currently off training and in her house before the national camp starts in Patiala from June 11, Jaismine said she will start planning for her big debut at the Olympics once she is back in training. “My parents are happy that I won the quota. There was no big celebration but yes Maa made churma for me. I am doing light training but once we are back in the camp my coaches will decide a programme and we will also analyse how to fight against a few of the contenders,” she said.