There used to be a time when M. Pandeeshwari and S. Azhagupandi spent most of their time practising at a make-shift boxing ring in Government High School in Kachakatti near Vadipatti in Madurai district.
“When boxing was first introduced in our school, our Physical Education master came to our class and asked if any of us were interested. Until then I had never taken part in this sport but I had participated in running and other athletic activities. It seemed interesting and I joined the coaching that took place after school hours,” says Ms. Pandeeshwari who is presently studying Class 12 at Government Girls Higher Secondary School in Vadipatti.
Her peer Ms. Azhagupandi, studying Class 11 at the same school, says when the coaching began for her in Class 9 in the old school, both of them took it lightly. “It was a pleasant distraction from school work and anyway it was new. So…