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.
The Indian Olympic Association presented cash rewards worth Rs 20 lakh, 10 lakh, and 7.5 lakh to the gold, silver and bronze medallists respectively.
A land-owning class, the Jats are a powerful community and account for 28 per cent of Haryana's population. The time, they believe, has now come for them to take revenge.
The protesting wrestlers and their supporters marched to the Hanuman Temple in New Delhi and will also visit the Bangla Sahib Gurudwara.
The Delhi Police on Friday registered two FIRs in connection with sexual harassment allegations levelled by women wrestlers against Wrestling Federation of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
The Athletes Commission of the IOA has recommended the national Olympic body to put systems in place to deal with issues of the players "with respect and dignity" in the light of the protest by India's top wrestlers.
The IOA ad-hoc panel on Wednesday rescheduled the WFI elections to July 11.
Sushil Kumar later ruled himself out of the running to take Narsingh's spot at Rio.
Vinesh Phogat, who lost in the quarter-finals of the women's 53-kg freestyle event at the Tokyo Olympics, penned a letter about emotional breakdowns, mental well-being and how being denied her physio affected her performance at the Games.
Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik on Thursday said she never demanded any exemption from Asian Games trials despite the IOA ad-hoc panel offering to consider her case.
Indian Olympic Association (IOA) president P T Usha on Thursday said the grapplers protesting on the streets amounts to indiscipline and is tarnishing the country's image.
Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra expressed solidarity with protesting wrestlers after meeting them at Jantar Mantar in New Delhi on Saturday and accused the government of 'protecting' WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who is facing allegations of sexual harassment levelled by women grapplers.
The veteran politician said he spoke to Olympic medallist Bajrang Punia on Tuesday night and promised to visit them at the protest site.
'Today we will write to the government of India to find a solution to the matter. Wrestling and wrestlers can't suffer. We are drafting a letter to urge the government to ensure that sport does not suffer'
The Pakistan Wrestling Federation on Tuesday claimed that its national team has been denied visa by the Indian High Commission for the upcoming Asian Championship scheduled to be held in New Delhi from May 10-14.
'We used to give these boxers a hammering in the ring and now they are teaching youngsters how to defend. Come on man!' 'People like Akhil Kumar and Jitender Kumar were among the top boxers in the world, but instead of choosing them to train young boxers they are picking people who are yes men.'
WFI President Sanjay Singh on Friday assured that the protesting wrestlers' trio of Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik would not face any discrimination and he would personally approach them for appearance in the Olympic Qualifiers trials, which will be held in Maharashtra.
Bajrang Punia says men's camp should start on schedule.
Bajrang Punia said they were ready to sacrifice medals as delivering justice to the victims would be their biggest medal.
With Narsingh's participation in serious doubt, Aruneel Sadadekar/Rediff.com spoke exclusively to Sushil Kumar's coach Satpal Singh.
The Northern Railway is set to suspend wrestler Sushil Kumar after he was arrested by the Delhi Police in a murder case
Sports Minister Anurag Thakur reiterated the government's commitment to an 'impartial probe' into the charges against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) of India has replaced Narsingh Yadav with Praveen Rana in the 74kg category of wrestling for Rio Olympics.
The wrestlers said they are surprised that Prime Minister Narendra Modi felicitates them and clicks pictures with them when they win medals but now he has turned a blind eye to their plight.
'These three wrestlers (Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik) are indirectly or directly part of the Congress.'
Sibal alleged that seven wrestlers, including a minor, have made alleged sexual harassment allegations but no FIR has been lodged so far despite the law being very clear on this aspect.
To skip Senior Nationals.
Amid the row over BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri's derogatory remarks in the Lok Sabha, BSP MP Danish Ali on Monday questioned the "delay" in action against the ruling party leader and alleged that the comments seem to have been sanctioned by the BJP's top leadership to build a narrative around him and his community.
Taking a tough stand against suspected dope offenders, the Wrestling Federation of India has withdrawn the names of at least six medal winners at the just concluded Junior National Wrestling Championship after they failed to provide samples for tests.
The protesting wrestlers said late on Saturday evening that there was a lot of "pressure" to call off the Mahila Mahapanchayat they have planned in front of the new Parliament building.
The protesting wrestlers refrained from immersing their medals in the river Ganges after being convinced by Khap and farmer leaders who sought five days to address their grievances.
A fresh date for Wresting Federation of India's (WFI) long-pending elections is likely to be announced on Wednesday after the Supreme Court set aside the stay imposed by Punjab and Haryana High Court, a member of the IOA-appointed ad hoc committee said.
Olympics bronze medallist Bajrang Punia said the marches to create awareness about their plight would continue with a candle-light march planned at the India Gate on May 23.
On Tuesday, seven top wrestlers filed a joint petition in the Supreme Court seeking registration of an FIR against Singh
A 23-year-old physiotherapy intern, who came to be known as "Nirbhaya (the fearless one)", was raped and assaulted by six men inside a bus in south Delhi on December 16, 2012, before being thrown out of the moving vehicle.
The beleaguered Indian Hockey Federation came down heavily on the Indian Olympic Association for the hockey team's poor show at the London Olympics and denounced the three-member committee set-up by it to look into the running of the Indian hockey.
'The assessment of most people is that there is a stable economic and political environment in India and that is attractive to investors.'
Dawtrey said he was planning to quit his job in May and travel to India to train in an academy affiliated with Pro Kabaddi side UP Yoddha.
Asian bronze medallist Ankus (38kg) has bagged the silver medal in the ongoing Cadet World Wrestling Championship in Sarajevo, Bosnia.
The women's national wrestling camp, which was scheduled to start from September 1 in Lucknow, was on Saturday postponed after top players expressed apprehensions about travelling amidst rising cases of coronavirus.
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