Guwahati: Lovlina Borgohain’s native village of Baro Mukhia at Sarupathar in Assam’s Golaghat district erupted in celebration on Friday after the boxer won Asian Games gold.Located around 300 km east of Guwahati, the village celebrated its daughter’s victory by singing, dancing and distributing sweets.Lovlina’s bronze at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 had already made her a source of immense pride as Assam’s first Olympic medallist. Her Asian Games gold brought another wave of celebrations to the village, this time on her birthday.Villagers had gathered around television sets on Friday morning to watch her final. “The bronze in the Tokyo Olympics was not less than gold for us or the state. This time, after seeing her continuous efforts and improvement since Tokyo, we were confident that she would win gold at the Asian Games. And she made it happen, that too on her birthday. Nothing could be a better birthday gift for her,” villager Swapan Chakrabarty said.Lovlina’s father, Tiken Borgohain, said relatives, villagers and well-wishers had begun gathering at their home from the morning.“It is the blessings of the Almighty, countless people, and Lovlina’s continuous efforts and dedication that eventually yielded this gold medal,” he said.Recalling the celebrations after Lovlina’s Tokyo bronze, Tiken said the village had marked that achievement with songs and dance as well.“A similar scene unfolded on Friday. Like every parent, we are delighted to see her success. A child’s success always gives parents immense happiness,” he said.Tiken, a small businessman, has two other daughters, twins Licha and Lima. Both took up Muay Thai, a form of kickboxing, and competed at the national level before eventually moving away from the sport.
