All posts tagged: Wrestling Trials

Wrestler Deepak Punia turns accidental weight change to a golden opportunity

Wrestler Deepak Punia turns accidental weight change to a golden opportunity

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Lucknow: Olympian Deepak Punia returned to the Indian national wrestling team after a year by winning the Asian Games Trials here at SAI Lucknow on Sunday. Punia, who has been battling injuries for the past two years, suffered another setback recently when he was unable to cut weight for his usual 86kg category due to an injury. As a result, he was forced to switch to the 97kg weight class. However, the change didn’t affect him much, as he powered through the trials with some impressive victories. “I was only training for the 86kg category and had no plans to switch,” said Punia after his win. “But 5-6 days ago, I suffered a muscle tear that didn’t allow me to cut weight. So, I had no option but to move up to 97kg,” he added. The injury might have forced him to compete in 97kg, but Punia didn’t want to put on extra weight beyond his body’s tolerance and was only 95kg at the weigh-in. Despite that, he continued to dominate on the mat, especially …

Deepak Punia returns for Asian Games; Aman and Sujeet Kalkal join the charge

Deepak Punia returns for Asian Games; Aman and Sujeet Kalkal join the charge

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Lucknow: Top Indian male wrestlers confirmed their quota for the 2026 Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games after a gruelling 12-hour-long selection process at SAI Lucknow on Sunday. Star Indian wrestlers Aman Sehrawat (57kg) and Sujeet Kalkal (65Kg) made it to the team comfortably, while Deepak Punia returned to the squad after a long wait. The Tokyo Olympian had a last-minute entry to the trial in a heavier weight class of 97kg after winning the Gonda National Open Tournament last month. He started his day with a cautious 4-0 win over Sahil Jaglan before claiming a pinfall win against Deepak Chahal in the second round. Later, he followed it up with a solid win over the top-seeded Vicky Hooda 7-3 in the semifinals and then claimed another victory by fall in the final against Jointy Kumar. Meanwhile, Aman had three wins on technical superiority to confirm his spot in the team, while Sujeet Kalkal edged past Vishal Kaliraman in the final to win the 65kg title. Coach Shako’s target tactical approach The Wrestling Federation of India has recently …

How Meenakshi did the improbable in Indian wrestling – pin Antim Panghal to clinch spot in Asian Championships

How Meenakshi did the improbable in Indian wrestling – pin Antim Panghal to clinch spot in Asian Championships

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4 min readNew DelhiUpdated: Mar 17, 2026 10:50 PM IST With just 20 seconds left in the bout, 25-year-old Meenakshi attempted something not many have dared to do for a long time on the Indian wrestling scene. The girl from Jind pinned down two-time World Championships medallist Antim Panghal to hand the former U23 World Champion her first defeat on the national circuit in over three years. Onlookers were stunned while Antim stayed on the mat for more than 30 seconds to process what had just happened as Meenakshi offered her hand to the inconsolable favourite to help her get back on her feet. Competing at the trials for the 2026 Asian Championships, Meenakshi claimed the berth in the 53kg category which has largely been Antim’s preserve since Vinesh Phogat left the scene. ALSO READ | Olympic medallist Aman Sehrawat leads campaign at Asian Championship as Meenakshi pips Antim Panghal for a spot “I am having fun,” Meenakshi quipped immediately after her bout. “I have been preparing for the past many years to fit in …

Olympic medallist Aman Sehrawat leads campaign at Asian Championship as Meenakshi pips Antim Panghal for a spot

Olympic medallist Aman Sehrawat leads campaign at Asian Championship as Meenakshi pips Antim Panghal for a spot

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4 min readMar 17, 2026 08:14 PM IST Paris Olympics medallist Aman Sehrawat will headline the Indian squad for the upcoming Asian Wrestling Championships scheduled from April 6 in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan after the trials concluded on Tuesday. While the men’s squad was on expected lines, the women’s trials in New Delhi saw surprises with two-time World Championships medallist Antim Panghal losing in the 53kg final to Meenakshi while rising heavyweight wrestler Kajal stunned former junior World Champion Priya Malik in the 76kg category. In one of the most fiercely competitive women’s wrestling trials in recent times, Antim was having a good day until she met Meenakshi in the final bout. The latter, who recently won a silver medal in the same weight category at the Tirana Ranking Series, displayed sturdy defence and pinned the two- time U23 World champion, much to everyone’s surprise. This is the first time in three years that Antim has lost a bout on the national circuit. In fact, Meenakshi had lost to Antim on three different occasions during trials before …

Sports Ministry to send Indian wrestlers for the Asian Championships

Sports Ministry to send Indian wrestlers for the Asian Championships

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The sports ministry has approved the wrestlers’ plea to send an Indian team for the Asian Championships, and according to reports, the team for the same will be selected based on a ‘talent hunt’. “We are clear that the athletes’ interests will not be harmed. India will certainly compete at the Asian Championships,” a sports ministry official told Hindustan Times. The Asian Championships, a mandatory tournament to secure qualification to the World Championships, will take place in Amman, Jordan from March 25th to 30th. This will be first competition this year for Indian wrestlers who have already missed two ranking series tournaments this year as they failed to get an approval from the sports ministry. Several wrestlers and the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president, Sanjay Singh, had previously sought the intervention of the Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya and had a meeting with him over the issue last month. Final team selection WFI had sent the same team that it had previously sent for the two ranking series to the ministry for approval. The ministry, …

WFI to allow railways wrestlers to represent states in Nationals

WFI to allow railways wrestlers to represent states in Nationals

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The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has taken a significant step in ensuring that Railways wrestlers can compete in the upcoming National Championship, which is set to begin on December 6, 2024, in Bengaluru. This comes after the Railways Sports Promotion Board (RSPB) decided not to send entries for the tournament, a move that has raised concerns among athletes who rely on the competition to advance in their careers. As part of a decision to support the wrestlers, the WFI has allowed them to participate by representing their respective states, despite RSPB not entering teams for the Nationals. The national body recognized the importance of this opportunity for the athletes, particularly since performance in these championships often leads to selection for international competitions. “There is no fault of these wrestlers, why should they suffer and lose a crucial year?” a WFI official told PTI. Although 81 wrestlers, including freestyle and Greco-Roman athletes, are affiliated with the Railways, no trials were held to select the team for the Nationals, leaving many wrestlers uncertain about their participation. …

The Great Indian Sports Administration Mess: Suspended email IDs, missing videos, misuse of funds | Sport-others News

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* Earlier this month, top Indian Olympic Association (IOA) members, including president PT Usha, lost access to their official email IDs. The reason? Non-payment of dues to the service provider. * In July, Arjuna Award winner rider Rakesh Pattu alleged that the Equestrian Federation of India spent close to Rs 50 lakh on videography. None of those videos, he wrote in a letter to equestrian and government officials, could be found anywhere. * Weightlifting officials accused of not returning a loan amount of Rs 1.75 crore to the IOA; football administrators of using official credit cards to buy products for personal use; hockey officials accused of misuse of public funds — all charges that each federation has denied. India’s Olympic sports federations have never been a model for good governance. Yet, even by their standards, the last few months and years have seen them hit new lows. So much so that the courts have had to constantly step in, keeping a close eye on the elections and placing ad-hoc committees to oversee day-to-day activities. Six …

WFI decides not to hold trials for Paris Olympics quota winners

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The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) decided not to hold selection trials for the six Paris Olympics quota place winners following a selection committee meeting in Delhi on Tuesday. However, the qualified wrestlers’ form and fitness will be assessed at the upcoming Ranking Series and subsequent training camp in Hungary. “We discussed the issue and both chief coaches were also of the view that trials could lead to injuries and impact India’s medal chances. So we have decided not to hold trials,” WFI president Sanjay Singh was quoted as saying by PTI. Six Indian wrestlers have qualified for the Paris Olympics. Aman Sehrawat (57kg) is the lone Indian male wrestler to qualify for the Olympics, while Vinesh Phogat (50kg), Antim Panghal (53kg), Anshu Malik (57kg), Nisha Dahiya (68kg) and Reetika Hooda (76kg) are the women wrestlers who have qualified. The WFI’s latest decision came after Aman, Anshu and Nisha wrote to the federation requesting it not to hold the trials, citing injury concerns before the Games. The federation nodded to their requests. But the WFI …

Wrestling trials for Olympics scheduled for June 10, Vinesh faces category dilemma

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India’s hopes for a robust wrestling contingent at the Paris Olympics received a mixed bag of results at the recent World Olympic Qualifier in Istanbul. While five women and one male competitor secured quota spots, the final lineup remains uncertain pending selection trials. In response to the need for clarity regarding the final Paris squad, Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Sanjay Singh told The Hindustan Times that selection trials will be conducted on June 10. “Selection trials will be held on June 10. It will be in the format as given in our policy where a challenger will be selected from the top four eligible wrestlers and there will be three bouts with the quota winner. The quota winner will have to win once while he gets two opportunities if he loses to the challenger,” he told Hindustan Times. The format, as per WFI policy, will involve a challenger selected from the top four eligible wrestlers competing against the quota winner in a series of three bouts. The quota winner must secure victory once, …

How Vinesh Phogat kept Paris Olympic dream alive by competing in two weight categories at selection trials | Sport-others News

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For Vinesh Phogat, living up to that statement began early in the morning, merely minutes into the proceedings of the selection trials for the Asian Olympic qualifiers and Asian Championships at NIS Patiala on Monday, on a day of dramatic events. At the centre of the storm was Vinesh, who started the day by weighing in for the 50kg Olympic weight category and shocked most who expected her to compete in her usual 53kg event. She also insisted that she wanted to be a part of the 53 kg trial, and essentially fight in two different weight classes. Her proclamation led to all eight draws being made public, except the 50kg and 53kg lists. It led to a three-hour delay during which athletes complained to the organisers that the interruption was providing more recovery time for certain athletes. One of those athletes with the grudge was 50kg wrestler Mamata Rani, who lost to Phogat on Monday and said that the extra time between bouts was giving an advantage to the two-time World Championship bronze medallist. …