Manisha Bhanwala went out of the bronze medal race after losing her repechage round 0-9 to Bulgaria's Bilyana Dudova.
Haryana showcased its wrestling prowess by sweeping all three overall team titles men's freestyle, Greco-Roman, and women's wrestling at the U-23 National Wrestling Championships held in Rohtak. The host state secured top honours with significant points, while Services Sports Control Board and Maharashtra also performed strongly, with individual athletes from various states claiming gold medals across different weight categories.
Former U17 World Champion Neha clinched a gold medal in the women's 59kg category at the Polyak Imre, Varga Janos & Kozma Istvan Memorial Senior Ranking Tournament in Budapest. This victory marked India's second gold, following Aman Sehrawat's earlier triumph. India also secured a silver medal through Mansi and a bronze through Savita in the 62kg women's wrestling division, bringing the total medal count to eight.
India concluded a highly successful campaign at the Ulaanbaatar Open Senior Ranking Series wrestling tournament, securing a total of 17 medals across freestyle, Greco-Roman, and women's categories. The men's freestyle team alone bagged three gold and four bronze medals, while the Greco-Roman team clinched the overall championship with two golds. The women's contingent also contributed significantly with three gold and four bronze medals, ensuring India's top-three finish in the team standings.
Indian wrestlers delivered a strong performance at the Budapest Ranking Series, securing a total of 12 medals.
Indian wrestlers delivered a strong performance at the Ulaanbaatar Open Ranking Series in Mongolia, securing four gold and two bronze medals across women's and Greco-Roman categories. Manisha, Neha, Sunil, and Nitesh clinched gold, contributing to India's six-medal tally.
India's Greco-Roman wrestlers had a successful start at the U23 Asian Championships, securing five medals, including two silver and three bronze, on the opening day of the competition.
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) disqualified over 500 wrestlers from a U-17 tournament in Gonda due to age fraud, exposed by a new Aadhaar-based verification system. This stringent check revealed significant discrepancies between birth certificates and Aadhaar records, with WFI vowing to continue this crackdown to ensure fair play in age-group competitions.
India's men's freestyle team emerged as champions at the U23 Asian Wrestling Championships, held in Da Nang, Vietnam. The country concluded its campaign with a total of 27 medals across various categories, showcasing dominance in freestyle, women's wrestling, and Greco-Roman disciplines.
Lalit advances to the gold medal match at the Asian Wrestling Championships, while Aman and Sunil Kumar will compete for bronze medals.
Deepak Punia's move to a higher weight category proved successful as he secured a spot in the Indian team for the Asian Games in the 97kg division. Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet Kalkal retained their places in the men's freestyle squad.
Haryana emerged as the dominant force at the U17 National Wrestling Championships 2026, securing titles in both Women's Wrestling and Freestyle events. Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) led in the Greco-Roman format. The championships took place over three days in Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar (Aurangabad).
Lalit secured a silver medal in the 55kg Greco Roman category. Sunil Kumar added a bronze, while Nitesh advanced to the final of the 97kg competition at the Asian Wrestling Championships, marking a successful day for India.
Indian wrestlers Mansi Lather, Kajal, and Sumit secured gold medals at the U23 Asian Wrestling Championships in Da Nang, Vietnam, leading a strong performance by the Indian contingent.
Indian Greco Roman wrestlers secured a silver and two bronze medals at the 2026 Senior Asian Wrestling Championships in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, bringing India's total to five medals. Nitesh won silver in the 97kg category, while Sachin Sahrawat and Prince claimed bronze in the 67kg and 82kg categories respectively.
Sunil Kumar won India's first Greco Roman medal in 13 years at the Asian Games, bagging a bronze in the 87kg category.
Former World Championships silver medallist Deepak Punia secured his place in the Indian team for the Asian Games after winning the 97kg freestyle competition at the selection trials. Other winners included Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet Kalkal.
Sunil Kumar proved too good for Azat Salidinov of Kyrgyzstan, winning 5-0, in the 87 kg final to win India's first Greco-Roman gold medal in the Asian Wrestling Championships in 27 years.
The Wrestling Federation of India has appointed three foreign coaches and a High Performance Director to enhance national camps in preparation for the Asian Games and the 2028 Olympics.
Bhanwala bounced back immediately with a strong move that got him into a position from where he could pin his rival.
Manish, competing in the 67kg, is the only Indian Greco Roman grappler to have won a bout thus far. He won his qualification bout 3-1 against Aleksandrs of Latvia before losing the 1/16 round 0-9 to Japan's Tsuchika Shimoyamada.
Jharkhand, Himachal Pradesh, and Mizoram secured multiple gold medals at the Khelo India Tribal Games, with wrestling and weightlifting events taking centre stage.
India's wrestling team, featuring a mix of experienced and emerging talent, is set to compete in the Asian Wrestling Championships in Bishkek, with high hopes for medal contention.
An Olympic medal, whatever its hue, could do wonders to Greco-Roman, just like Sushil Kumar's bronze at the 2008 Beijing Games did for freestyle wrestling in India.
Hardeep sprung a surprise by booking an Olympic quota place for India in Greco-Roman wrestling, which is not the country's forte, after making the 98kg category final on the last day of the Asian Olympic Qualification championship, in Astana, on Sunday.
A communication from United World Wrestling's anti-doping department confirmed Vinesh Phogat's retirement intimation to the International Testing Agency (ITA) in December 2024, amidst claims and controversies surrounding her comeback and eligibility for the Asian Games.
Indian women wrestlers Hansika Lamba and Neha won bronze medals, while Meenakshi Goyat advanced to the final at the Senior Asian Wrestling Championships.
Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Sanjay Singh has guaranteed Vinesh Phogat's safety at the National Open Ranking Tournament in Gonda, addressing her concerns about potential bias and security issues related to the venue's connection to former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
Wrestling Federation of India president Sanjay Singh has guaranteed Vinesh Phogat's safety at the National Open Ranking Tournament in Gonda, dismissing concerns about the venue's association with former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
The Greco Roman style, a poor cousin of free style wrestling in India, had a lot cheer with historic three-medal performance at the U-23 World Championships through Sajan Bhanwala, Nitesh and Vikas.
India's Greco Roman wrestler Hardeep Singh lost his opening round bout in the 98 kg category by technical points to Turkey's Ildem Cenk at the Rio Olympics on Tuesday. The Turkish wrestler won the bout 2-1 despite a stiff resistance from the 25-year-old Indian. Hardeep will still have a chance in the repechage if Cenk makes it to the final.
Arunachal Pradesh's Nedi Ngi won gold in the women's 5000m at the Khelo India Tribal Games, while Maharashtra dominated the men's event. Karnataka leads the medal tally.
Grapplers Rajender Kumar and Sunil Kumar gave India more reasons to cheer by clinching a gold and bronze respectively in Greco-Roman style wrestling in the Commonwealth Games on Wednesday.
Jharkhand sprinters Shiv Kumar Soren and Prithvi Oraon emerged as the fastest athletes at the inaugural Khelo India Tribal Games, while hosts Chhattisgarh secured medals in shot put and discus throw.
Ashu beat Syria's Abdulkarim Mohammad Al-Hasan 8-1 while Kundu defeated Nao Kusaka of Japan 8-0 inside 90 seconds in a lop-sided 72kg bronze medal bout.
India's Greco-Roman grapplers Ravinder Singh, Harpreet Singh and Hardeep crashed out in the penultimate day of the World Wrestling Championships in Budapest on Saturday.
Mixing strong defence with measured attack, young wrestler Antim Panghal won her second World Championship medal with a dominating 9-1 victory over U-23 World Champion Emma Jonna Denise Malmgren in the bronze play-off in Zagreb on Thursday, ensuring that the Indian contingent won't return empty-handed from the Croatian capital.
The medal count was nowhere close to satisfactory at the senior level but junior performances held out hope for a brighter future as Indian wrestling searched for new stars in a challenging 2025.
Grappler Sandeep Tulsi Yadav created history by winning India's first-ever medal in the Greco-Roman category of the Senior World Wrestling Championships after beating Serbia's Aleksandar Maksimovic in the 66kg division in Budapest on Sunday.
After a disappointing 2024 season, the senior Asian Championships will provide an opportunity for Indian wrestlers like Antim Panghal and Deepak Punia to make a fresh start.
