A bitter court battle, followed by an embarrassing dope scandal, before some redemption through an Olympic medal -- Indian wrestling in 2016 mirrored the script of a Bollywood potboiler in which Sakshi Malik emerged as the new star on the horizon. For most part of the year, wrestling hit the headlines for all the wrong reasons, making it a tumultuous Olympic build-up after two-time medallist Sushil Kumar found himself ousted from contention just a couple of months before the Games in Rio. The chain of events that set in ended up disgracing the sport before Sakshi emerged an unlikely saviour in the Brazillian city.
Wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat, who had sought time till August 10 to prepare for Asian Games and World Championship trials, are set to leave for Kyrgystan and Hungary respectively.
A shock International Olympic Committee (IOC) decision to remove wrestling from the 2020 Olympic Games programme and then include it in a shortlist of sports for those Games was no mistake, IOC president Jacques Rogge said on Friday.
Sakshi Malik, one of the prominent faces of the agitation against former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, welcomed the WFI's suspension.
A long sabbatical and a rejig in weight categories notwithstanding, Olympic heroes Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt reaffirmed their dominance on the world stage and ended a 28-year gold drought at the Asian Games in a successful 2014.
Describing wrestling's omission from the 2020 Summer Games as against the Olympic tradition, the Sports Ministry asked India's representative in the IOC Randhir Singh to urgently take up the matter with the Executive Board and request the world body to reconsider its decision.
WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh urged that the national championships and camps should be conducted as all activities have come to a standstill.
As a former chief executive of the United States Olympic Committee, Jim Scherr knows better than most the daunting challenge facing wrestling as the sport tries to avoid being tossed from the Games.
The dates for the much-awaited WFI elections have been confirmed, with the results also set to be announced on the same day.
Bajrang skips Worlds trials in Patiala, set to leave for Kyrgyzstan to prepare for Asian Games
Barring 2004 and 2009 when Navjot Singh Sidhu won the Amritsar seat as a BJP MP and 1998 when Daya Singh Sodhi from BJP was elected as the MP, it has essentially a Congress bastion.
While Tomar informed only about Pakistan's participation, the PTI has learnt that clearance has been put on hold also for wrestlers from Iraq and Afghanistan.
He will now clash with Switzerland's Stefan Reichmuth for a place in the gold medal match.
IOA plans to hold WFI elections on July 4, appoints Retd. Justice Mahesh Mittal as returning officer
Bajrang Punia claimed that Yogeshwar Dutt had several times asked him to lose matches on purpose in the past.
England captain Ben Stokes on Saturday said staying true to the 'Bazball' approach did not work and conceded that India were too good in their own conditions, always finding a way to wriggle out of tight curves.
The Delhi Police has recorded the statement of Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh in connection with the allegations of sexual harassment.
Antim Panghal shocked reigning champion Olivia Dominique Parrish en route to the World Championship semifinals.
Monday is the last date for filing nominations.
Wrestling was welcomed back into the Olympic fold on Sunday after a seven-month exile.
Bismillah Khan was the chief patron of the Banaras Sporting Club for the last 10 years.
Men and women alike would wrestle the untamed horses to the ground with their hands and arms to cut their manes and tails.
Olympic bronze medallist Bajrang Punia on Thursday indicated he might withdraw from the Asian Games if all the panchayats that backed him during the protest at Jantar Mantar ask him to do so.
Wrestling was welcomed back into the Olympic fold on Sunday after a seven-month exile.
India Test captain Virat Kohli became the second cricketer after Rohit Sharma to join the Pro Wrestling League bandwagon after he was named as the co-owner of the Bengaluru Yodhas team.
India's top grapplers Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik are reportedly making a last-ditch effort to ensure Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh's close aide, Sanjay Singh, does not become the Wrestling Federation of India chief.
Eager to fetch an Asian Games gold on his comeback to competitive wrestling after a long hiatus, star freestyle grappler Sushil Kumar will head to Georgia for a ten-day tune-up ahead of the continental showpiece.
If a keen tussle for a ticket to Rio Games between double Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar and rising star Narsingh Yadav grabbed headlines off the mat, the youngsters showed the sport's bench strength in a country that gave the world the much-touted Pro Wrestling League this year.
In Phase 6, indications are that the BJP, which is defending 40 seats, will lose in double digits and gain in single digits. Not good, if you are the ruling party scrambling to earn a working majority, with just one phase left to go, argues Prem Panicker.
'In India, I'm able to work with the biggest stars on creating a scene, creating that emotion, without being too hung up on their persona.'
Defending champion Bajrang Punia settled for a bronze in men's 65kg freestyle as Indian grapplers bagged two medals on the penultimate day of the Senior Asian Wrestling Championships
Rio Olympics bronze medallist Sakshi Malik and Asian Games champion Vinesh Phogat won a bronze each as India's women ended their campaign without a gold medal in the Asian Wrestling Championships, in Xi'an, on Friday.
The world wrestling federation (FILA) will hold an extraordinary congress in May to elect a new president as the ancient sport battles to maintain its place on the Olympic programme.
The wrestlers, who had been protesting at Jantar Mantar since April 23 seeking the arrest of Singh, were removed from the site by the Delhi Police on Sunday after they tried to march to the new Parliament building that was inaugurated the same day.
A defiant Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) will challenge its suspension by the Sports Ministry in court next week and has also called for an Executive Committee meeting in New Delhi on January 16 to discuss the way forward.
Mausam Khatri on Thursday gave the Indian wrestling contingent its third medal at the ongoing Asian Games after bagging a bronze in the men's 96kg freestyle competition in Guangzhou.
Top Indian wrestlers have returned to Jantar Mantar in New Delhi to continue their protest
The United States, Iran and Russia may be at odds over issues including Syria's civil war and Tehran's nuclear ambitions, but on Tuesday their wrestling teams formed an unlikely coalition at the United Nations to keep their sport in the Olympics.
Indian wrestling is well and truly on an all-time high as the country, in what turned out to be a double delight, on Friday earned a maiden World Cup berth on the back of its best-ever sixth-place finish in men's free-style at the World Championships in Budapest.
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