SACRIFICE FOR GOLD HUNT

S'pore boxer Danisha breaks bond 'with no regrets' as she eyes SEA Games success

- Deepanraj Ganesan

Danisha Mathialagan thrust herself into the spotlight in 2023 when she became the first Singaporean boxer to qualify for the Asian Games since 1976. But the 27-year-old is hungry for more milestones.

In 2025, her sights are set on delivering a career-defining knockout: Winning a SEA Games medal in Thailand in December.

To give herself more than a fighting chance, Danisha has made a tough call outside the ring.

She was supposed to start a four-year bond with a local hospital after graduating with a degree in diagnostic radiography from the Singapore Institute of Technology last October, but she told The Straits Times that she has decided to break the bond.

This will mean having to pay back around $130,000 that had been provided as tuition fees and allowances over the last four years.

Danisha, who is currently working as a freelance embalmer, which gives her the flexibility to train twice a day, said: "If I work in a hospital, it would mean I won't be able to box. Because I will have to work night shifts and it would be really hard to continue in this sport.

"Ultimately, I decided that since I saved most of the allowances and will be able to pay back the bond amount, I had to do this for myself. I am in the prime years of my boxing career and I will not be able to box in my 40s, so if I don't continue now, then when?