Laishram Sarita Devi (born 1 March 1982) is an Indian boxer from

Manipur Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a States and territories of India, state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It ...

. She is a national champion and a former world champion in the

lightweight Lightweight is a weight class in combat sports and rowing. Boxing Professional boxing The lightweight division is over 130 pounds (59 kilograms) and up to 135 pounds (61.2 kilograms) weight class in the sport of boxing. Notable lightweight b ...

class. In 2009, she was awarded

Arjuna award The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjuna, on ...

by the government of India for her achievements.

Early life

Sarita Devi was born in Khunou Thoubal into a Meitei Hindu family, as the sixth of eight siblings. She used to spend her time helping her parents in collecting firewood and in the fields, which helped her build the stamina she has today. Sarita completed her high school in Waithou Mapal High School till the eighth standard and then went to Bal Baidya Mandir, Thoubal to complete her matriculation. She then went to an open-school to complete her twelfth standard to cope with her busy boxing schedule.

Career

Devi turned professional in boxing in 2000, inspired by the achievements of

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and activist. Nicknamed "The Greatest", he is regarded as one of the most significant sports figures of the 20th century, ...

. The following year, she represented India at the Asian Boxing Championships in

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estimated populatio ...

, and won a silver medal in her weight class. Following this victory, she won medals in various tournaments, including a gold at the 2006 World Championships in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the NCT Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati B ...

. In 2005, she was offered the post of Sub-Inspector (SI) by the police department of

, for winning a bronze medal in the 3rd World Women Boxing Championship,

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eigh ...

and was promoted to the rank of DSP in February, 2010. She also won the silver medal at the

2014 Commonwealth Games The 2014 Commonwealth Games ( gd, Geamannan a' Cho-fhlaitheis 2014), officially known as the XX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Glasgow 2014, ( sco, Glesca 2014 or Glesga 2014; gd, Glaschu 2014), was an international multi-sport ev ...

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

. She failed to qualify for 2016

Rio Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro d ...

, after losing to Victoria Torres, with a score of 0–3. In 2018, she won Silver Medal at Indian Open International Championships,

and bagged a Gold Medal at Sr. National Boxing Championships,

Rohtak Rohtak () is a city and the administrative headquarters of the Rohtak district in the Indian state of Haryana. It lies north-west of New Delhi and south of the state capital Chandigarh on National Highway 9 (India), NH 9(old NH 10). Rohtak fo ...

. She also won in Women's World Boxing Championship with a split 4-0 verdict against Sandra Diana.

2014 Asian Games controversy

Devi entered the

2014 Asian Games The 2014 Asian Games ( ko, 2014년 아시아 경기대회/2014년 아시안 게임, Icheon sip-sa nyeon Asia gyeonggi daehoe/Icheon sip-sa nyeon Asian Geim), officially known as the 17th Asian Games ( ko, 제17회 아시아 경기대회/제17회 ...

in Incheon,

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, competing in the

category. With a win margin of 3–0 both in the Round of 16 and Quarterfinals, she entered the semifinals to face

's Park Ji-Na on 30 September. After the match, she was handed a 0–3 defeat verdict by the judges of the match, which turned out to be hugely controversial, considering that Devi had knocked Park out in the third round and also a convincing fourth round, before having rained heavy blows on Park throughout the first two rounds. Following this, the Indian team lodged a protest against the decision, which was rejected by the

AIBA The International Boxing Association (IBA), previously known as the Association Internationale de Boxe Amateur (AIBA), is an independent sport organization that sanctions amateur (Olympic-style) boxing matches and awards world and subordinate cha ...

's technical committee. At the medal awarding ceremony, Devi refused to accept her bronze medal and handed it over to the silver medallist, Park. However, she accepted the medal later. This was followed by provisional suspension of her coaches by the AIBA. She was handed a one-year ban by the

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Devi, Laishram Sarita Indian women boxers Sportswomen from Manipur Recipients of the Arjuna Award Living people 1985 births Asian Games medalists in boxing Boxers at the 2014 Asian Games AIBA Women's World Boxing Championships medalists Asian Games bronze medalists for India Commonwealth Games silver medallists for India Boxers at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games medallists in boxing People from Imphal West district Medalists at the 2014 Asian Games Boxers from Manipur Lightweight boxers 21st-century Indian women Medallists at the 2014 Commonwealth Games