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Nikhat Zareen Is A 3-Time Boxing Gold Medalist. But That's Not All The-26-year-old Arjuna Awardee, Nikhat Zareen believes the recipe for her success and for any successful sportsperson is, " Dedication, hard work and sacrifices."

By Kavya Pillai

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"There's something so special about a woman who dominates in a man's world. It takes a certain grace, strength, intelligence, fearlessness, and the nerve to never take no for an answer," said nine time Grammy winner, singer and artist Rihana. There are such women in every field. Whether the world chooses to give them a platform of recognition or not, they pave their way to it regardless. One such example is Nikhat Zareen an Indian boxer.

Zareen did her schooling in Nirmala Hrudaya Girls High School where "social science" perked her interest and made it one of her favorite subjects. She has come a long way since then to secure herself three gold medals in 2011 at AIBA Women's Youth & Junior World Boxing Championships held in Antalya, 2022 IBA Women's World Boxing Championships and at the 2022 IBA World Boxing Championships

The-26-year-old Arjuna Awardee, believes the recipe for her success and for any successful sportsperson is, " Dedication, hard work and sacrifices." Growing up she had her father Mohammad Jameel Ahmed as her role model in her family. He was a cricketer, athlete and footballer."He's been my rock since the beginning of my career," she said. Unlike other athletes who decide very young that they will dedicate their life to sports, Nikhat made her decision in 2010. After she secured the National medal at the Junior National Boxing Championship.

At one of Europe's oldest boxing tournaments called Strandja Memorial, Zareen surprised the world by becoming the first Indian boxer to score two medals at the tournament. In the same tournament Zareen beat Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Buse Naz Cakiroglu and three- time European champion at the 52kg crown Tetiana Bob.

Looking over the past year, 2022, Zareen has come a long way and has created a space for herself. "It was the best year of my career so far. All of my struggles and hard work paid off," she said.

Kavya Pillai

Former Correspondent

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