Tokyo Olympic medallists Lovlina Borgohain, PV Sindu and Saikhom Mirabai Chanu have featured on the cover of VOGUE.
The trio graced the cover for VOGUE India’s 14th anniversary edition, which honours female athletes.
Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu won silver, ace badminton player PV Sindhu and boxing legend Lovlina won bronze in the Tokyo Olympics.
“PV Sindhu, Saikhom Mirabai Chanu and Lovlina Borgohain’s role in quenching India’s thirst for Olympic medal this year is undeniable, but what the three cover stars of our 14th anniversary issue have done at the grassroots level is far more important: given wings to the dreams of every sportsgirl in the country,” VOGUE India said.
Lovlina Borgohain:
“A day before she was supposed to leave with the Olympic-qualified boxers for a training camp in Europe, Borgohain tested positive for Covid-19. But she did not let this dash her hopes, in fact, she went on to upstage World No2 Taiwanese middleweight boxer Chen Nien-chin in the 69kg category. Besides this being an impressive feat to achieve in her maiden Olympics, Borgohain’s bronze also earned her the distinction of winning India’s only boxing medal at the Tokyo Games. At present, the boxer is also only the third Indian ever—after Vijender Singh and MC Mary Kom—to make it to the winners’ podium at the Olympics. In the cover story, she talks about the resilience and grit that led her to victory,” VOGUE India said for Lovlina Borgohain.
Determined to defy the odds, @LovlinaBorgohai’s bronze success at the Tokyo Olympics is not just a story of resilience but one of grit that every girl can aspire to. Read to see more about our October 2021 cover stars.https://t.co/TWzTPgr39a pic.twitter.com/6y9L2cZpc4
— VOGUE India (@VOGUEIndia) October 2, 2021
Saikhom Mirabai Chanu:
“The weightlifter from Manipur ended an impatient 21-year wait for a medal in the sport, clinching a big win in the 49kg category on the very first day of the Tokyo Olympics. Coming back strong from her disappointing—as she calls it—outing at the 2016 Rio Games, the 27-year-old lifted a total of 202kg (87kg+115kg), bringing the silver home. Growing up, Chanu wanted to be an archer, but thankfully, reading about fellow Manipur sportswoman Kunjarani Devi’s triumphs in the arena nudged her towards weightlifting. In the cover story, she talks about overcoming the mental burdens that come with playing sports competitively, a topic whose importance was bolstered by international athletes like Simone Biles and Naomi Osaka earlier this year,” VOGUE India said for Mirabai Chanu.
In a year that saw many sportspeople spark conversations around mental health, the silver lining for @Mirabai_Chanu was letting go of the mental burden faced by most athletes, and believing in herself. Read to see more about our October 2021 cover stars.https://t.co/JjnRaYdRiw pic.twitter.com/my2cXdRcA7
— VOGUE India (@VOGUEIndia) October 2, 2021
PV Sindhu:
“Expectations from Sindhu were at an all-time high this year, considering the silver she won at the Rio Olympics in 2016, and the Hyderabad-based badminton player did not disappoint. Winning a bronze in the women’s singles, she became the first Indian woman and only the second person from the country to have two individual Olympic medals to her name. The shuttler first came into the limelight back in 2014, when she won bronze medals in the world championship, Asian Games, Commonwealth Games and Asian Championships. Since then, Sindhu has been one of the most consistent performers globally and has returned with medals from almost every major event she participated in. In the cover story, India’s most marketable female athlete opens up about future expectations and the pressures of fame,” VOGUE India said for PV Sindhu.
India’s most marketable female athlete and one of the world’s highest earning sportswomen, PV Sindhu’s bronze in the women’s singles established her place as one of India’s stars at the Tokyo Olympics. Read to see more about our October 2021 cover stars.https://t.co/TWzTPgr39a pic.twitter.com/jXpZ7cowFL
— VOGUE India (@VOGUEIndia) October 2, 2021
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