Despite lockdowns, delays, Tunisian athlete hungry for olympic gold

Despite lockdowns, delays, Tunisian athlete hungry for olympic gold

Despite restrictions imposed to combat the spread of coronavirus, female boxer Mariem Homrani continues training towards her dream.

SHOWS: TUNIS, TUNISIA (APRIL 7, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 1.

VARIOUS OF FEMALE BOXER WHO QUALIFIED FOR TOKYO OLYMPICS, MARIEM HOMRANI, TRAINING WITH HUSBAND AND COACH IN LIVING ROOM TUNIS, TUNISIA (APRIL 11, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 2.

VARIOUS OF HOMRANI PULLING ROPE ATTACHED TO WEIGHTS 3.

VARIOUS OF HOMRANI TRAINING TUNIS, TUNISIA (APRIL 7, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 4.

HOMRANI AND ZAYANI RUNNING 5.

(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) TUNISIAN BOXER WHO QUALIFIED FOR TOKYO OLYMPICS, MARIEM HOMRANI, SAYING: "Due to the situation we're facing, the situation the whole world is facing because of the coronavirus, I have been training at home.

I do some jogging in this area, then continue my training at home with my husband.

This is just to maintain my physical fitness, since under these circumstances I am unable to get professional training or participate in competitions.

I have also been following other boxers who qualified for the Olympics, those in my weight bracket, to study their strengths and their weaknesses." TUNIS, TUNISIA (APRIL 11, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 6.

VARIOUS OF HOMRANI TRAINING 7.

HOMRANI CLIMBING UP STAIRS AS HUSBAND CARRYING LEGS 8.

VARIOUS OF HOMRANI WRAPPING HER HAND WITH BANDAGE TUNIS, TUNISIA (APRIL 7, 2020) (REUTERS - ACCESS ALL) 9.

(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) TUNISIAN BOXER WHO QUALIFIED FOR TOKYO OLYMPICS, MARIEM HOMRANI, SAYING: "Everyone was surprised when I qualified (for the Olympics), no one believed I could do it.

For me, before I step into the ring, I don't think about how well or how poorly I trained.

I only focus on the sacrifice, the effort I made, and how patient I was in waiting for this moment.

I think of how I woke up at 3am everyday to train.

But when I'm in the ring, I forget everything, I see my country's flag in front of me and focus on my sacrifice." 10.

VARIOUS OF HOMRANI TRAINING WITH HUSBAND 11.

(SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) HOMRANI'S HUSBAND AND COACH, IMED ZAYANI, SAYING: "What Mariam achieved was miraculous.

Truly miraculous.

It's impossible for anyone to qualify for the Olympics with the limited resources that were available to Mariam.

Her will is the only thing that helped her, her will and the support of her family, which helped overcome all the obstacles." 12.

HOMRANI AND FAMILY LOOKING AT COMPETITION PHOTOS 13.

VARIOUS OF COMPETITION PHOTOS AND TICKETS 14.

HOMRANI HOLDING UP HER TOKYO OLYMPICS QUALIFIER MEDAL 15.

HOMRANI WITH FAMILY STORY: Tunisian athlete, Mariem Homrani, transformed her living room into a boxing ring and her neighbourhood into a gym, after restrictions imposed to curb the spread of coronavirus made it difficult for her to continue her regular training routine.

The 29-year-old boxer, who qualified for the now postponed Tokyo Olympics, said she is determined to maintain her fitness during this difficult period.

She trains several times a day with her coach and husband, Imed Zayani, who described Mariam's achievement with limited resources as "miraculous." The pair can often be found running through their neighbourhood, or using weights and pulleys found outdoors, to train with.

Homrani is one of two Tunisian boxers who qualified for the Tokyo Olympics.

The Tokyo Games, originally scheduled to start in July this year, have been postponed to July 23 - August 8, 2021 due to the pandemic.

(Production: Jihed Abidellaoui, Bushra Shakhshir)