National Games 2023: Manipur's Leimapokpum Sanatombi Chanu celebrates birth of baby girl with Wushu gold in Goa

A veteran at the national level, Sanatombi has now won five medals.

Manipur’s Leimapokpum Sanatombi Chanu has made winning gold medals a routine affair. The veteran Wushu player clinched her fourth gold and fifth National Games 2023 medal overall by topping the standings in the Tai Chi event of Wushu’s Taolu division.

What makes her gold at the Campal Open Ground special is that it’s her first National Games gold after giving birth to a baby girl last year. Sanatombi returned to the mat within six months and secured her place back at the National Camp in Patiala by winning gold at the Senior Nationals in November last year.

Her achievement also kept her in contention for an Asian Games spot in Hangzhou. However, she wasn’t selected for the event because she hadn’t participated in any international competition since 2019.

“I had previously won three golds (with a silver in 2007, two golds in 2011, and one gold in 2015), but this one is special because I left my one-and-a-half-year-old daughter back home in Manipur as her father was also on a National Games assignment with another team,” Sanatombi said.

“It was initially very tough to restart training after delivery as muscle development became exceedingly difficult. I had to start with light jogging before gradually moving on to strength training. In three months, I had the senior national championships (in November 2022), and I was determined to win it at all costs to regain my confidence. Eventually, I won the gold and secured my place back in the national camp,” she added.

Born to a paddy farmer from Imphal East, Sanatombi is the third of five sisters and has overcome numerous financial obstacles since taking up the sport in 2004.

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“There were occasions when I would miss tournaments because I couldn’t afford the tickets, but I always had the belief that someday things would change for the better. The moment came in 2007 after I received a cash award of 1.70 lakh. That helped me repay the debts, and the 2011 gold meant that I could now support my family,” she added.

Sanatombi has been a dominant force in the senior national arena since making her debut in 2007 with a gold. She managed a hat-trick of golds until 2009 before a dip in performance saw her pocket a silver in 2011. However, since then, it has been a gold rush for the now 34-year-old with top finishes across all editions of the National championships until 2022.

In international tournaments, Sanatombi boasts two golds from the South Asian Games and a 2016 World Cup bronze, in addition to a 2017 bronze at the BRICS championships.

Married to James Boy Singh, a coach involved with the Services Canoeing and Kayaking teams, Sanatombi said she hasn’t had the opportunity to catch up with her better half despite the couple being in the same state.

“Our communication is mostly virtual despite being in the same state. I’m involved with my sport, and he’s a coach, so we couldn’t manage time to meet each other. Also, we have our kid with her aunt. I hope one day she understands our sacrifice,” said an emotional Sanatombi.

As an ASI with Manipur Police, Sanatombi hopes to continue playing for another couple of years and has her eyes on taking up coaching once she retires from the sport. But for now, her hunger for gold lives on.