Fighting for an Olympic ticket on the unfamiliar legal turf, Sushil Kumar's glorious wrestling career may meet an unceremonious end when the Delhi High Court pronounces its verdict on Monday on who gets to board the flight to Rio between him and Narsingh Yadav. An unfavourable verdict for Sushil may not be the end on the legal front as he can still challenge the ruling in the Supreme Court. But it could well signal the end of the road for perhaps the greatest Indian Olympian, who won two back-to-back medals. With less than two months left for the Olympics, starting August 5, future look bleak for the unassuming grappler from Haryana whose injuries played a part in the entire sequence of events leading up to Monday. The Delhi High Court, in its last hearing on Thursday, gave clear indications that it was likely to give a judgement in favour of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) in the tiff over selection trials in the men's 74kg freestyle category. The Delhi High court had observed that it did not find "any statutory mandate" to hold trials before the Olympics.
The Delhi HC had issued a notice to the Wrestling Federation of India and the Centre in reply to the plea by wrestler Sushil Kumar over his selection battle with Narsingh Yadav for the Rio Olympics.
Virat Kohli sent the shutterbugs into a clicking frenzy as he received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award
Wrestlers Ravinder Khatri and Babita Kumari have secured spots at the upcoming Rio Olympics after their rivals failed a dope test, taking the total number of quota places from India to eight. Khatri was awarded the berth in the Greco-Roman 85 kg after Kenzheev Zhanarbek of Kyrgystan tested positive at the Asian Olympic qualifier. Babita gets a shot at competing in Rio with Mongolian wrestler Sumiya Erdenechimeg failing the dope test in 53 kg freestyle, also at the Asian qualifier. Last week, Vinesh Phogat clinched a gold as she and Sakshi Malik secured Rio berths in 48 and 58kg respectively at the second World Olympic Qualifying tournament in a historic feat of two Indian women wrestlers qualifying for Olympics for the first time.
Yogeshwar Dutt is aiming for a yellow metal at next year's World Championships and thereby earn an automatic berth in the 2016 Rio Olympics.
They joined the BJP in the presence of Sports and Youth Affairs Minister Kiren Rijiju, party's general secretary in charge of Haryana Anil Jain and its state chief Subhash Barala.
Rubbishing rumours that he had engineered the dope fiasco surrounding Olympic-bound Narsingh Yadav, a fuming Satpal Singh said it was wrong to point fingers at him and his protege without any proof. A fuming Satpal said the allegations against him were absolutely baseless and was ready to face any inquiry.
'I didn't go for the World Championships to see someone else take my place at the Olympics.'
India's limited-overs vice-captain Rohit Sharma, star wrestler Vinesh Phogat, TT player Manika Batra and Paralympic gold-winning high jumper Mariyappan Thangavelu were on Tuesday picked for this year's Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award by the sports ministry's selection committee.
There was ecstasy and agony in equal measure for the Indian contingent on Friday.
Speaking exclusively to Aruneel Sadadekar/Rediff.com, the Haryana-based wrestler shed light on the latest reports of Asgarov testing positive and Sakshi Malik's bronze medal feat at the Rio Olympics.
The World Championships will be held in Budapest from October 20-28.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Wednesday.
Led by young flag-bearer Javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, the athletes, clad in blue suits, waved to the crowd with small flags in their hands.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Sunday
Phogat sisters will have to explain their absence for any chance of a comeback, the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) said
India cricket captain Virat Kohli and weightlifter Mirabai Chanu were on Monday recommended for Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna by the awards selection committee.
Bajrang Punia has established himself as the undisputed superstar of Indian wrestling but the road to glory was fraught with temptations
'My roommate and training partner Sandeep (Yadav) has also tested positive, which has confirmed my suspicion.' 'Should I train or keep a tab of my water bottle?' 'Just tell me, who is going to benefit from this?'
In the twilight of his career and prone to injuries like never before, ace Indian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt is still eager to continue and insists that the thought of retirement has not even crossed his mind yet.
Sania Mirza's was officially named for the coveted Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award on Friday. The Hyderabadi lady is only the second tennis player to be nominated for the country's highest sport honour.
Vinesh Phogat was unable to hold back the tears in Istanbul last month when she emerged from a turbulent fortnight with a gold medal around her neck and a ticket to the Rio Olympics in her possession.
Long-serving archery coach Purnima Mahato and women's hockey coach Narendra Singh Saini were among five sporting personalities who were recommended for the prestigious Dronacharya award this year.
Touching feet is the traditional Indian way of showing respect to someone but, as his numerous opponents would vouch, if it's on the wrestling mat and the outstretched arms belong to Yogeshwar Dutt, it normally means danger.
Shuttler P V Sindhu scripted a new chapter in Indian Olympic history with unprecedented feat but the embattled Narsingh Yadav's dreams lay in tatters after being slapped with a four-year doping ban on a bitter-sweet day for the country at the Rio Games.
Amidst controversies, the National Sports Awards were presented by President Pranab Mukherjee at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on Friday.
Asian Games will be a reality check for India's athletes after the Commonwealth Games high
Using a sledgehammer to fix some ills can cut down a game at its peak, warns Shekhar Gupta.
Wrestler Bajrang Punia clinched India's first gold medal in the 18th Asian Games after defeating Takatani Daichi of Japan in the men's 65 kg freestyle title bout, in Jakarta, on Sunday.
Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President Narinder Batra made the announcement during the send-off ceremony in New Delhi on Monday.
India's Manika Batra and Mouma Das lost 3-0 to Tianwei Feng and Mengyu Yu of Singapore in the women's sinlges final.
Caught in the middle of a controversy over arranging a selection trial to choose between Sushil Kumar and Narsingh Pancham Yadav for this year's Rio Olympics, the Wrestling Federation of India is likely to meet on Tuesday to break the deadlock, which is threatening to snowball into a massive furore.
Rediff.com brings you the second instalment of the Best Sports Photos of the Year!
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
Wrestling's international governing body, FILA has announced a rejig in weight classes for its competitions, including those of the 2016 Rio Olympic Games, a development which would lead to India's medallists Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt moving up to a higher weight category.
As preparations for the Rio Olympics gather pace, India may be headed for yet another paltry medal haul.
A summary of sports events and persons who made news on Thursday
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Saturday
Haryana government has directed sportspersons employed with it to deposit one-third of their earnings from commercial and professional commitments to the state sports council
Bajrang Punia's bid to become only the second Indian to win a gold medal at the World Championship fell flat, as a tactically superior Takuto Otoguro stunned the Indian in the 65kg final, in Budapest, on Monday.
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances