Indian wrestler Abhimanyou Mandwal emphasises the importance of mental strength as he aims for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, transitioning to the 74kg category and drawing on his fearless upbringing and recent successes.
The National Senior Federation Competition scheduled to be held in Ranchi from May 22 to 25 will serve as the final selection event for the country's track and field athletes for the Glasgow Commonwealth Games starting July 23.
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.
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.
India have been clubbed in Group E along with Bangladesh, Uzbekistan and Syria for next year's qualifiers of the Asian Football Confederation Under-23 Championship 2016.
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.
The four-day selection trials began on Wednesday at NIS Patiala and SAI Regional Centre in Sonepat under the chairmanship of ad hoc panel member Bhupinder Singh Bajwa.
'Clifford did well to win the Super Cup for Odisha FC, and I'm sure we can expect a good performance from the Indian team.'
Reetika Hooda blew away a 6-2 lead, conceding four points in the last 10 seconds of the women's 76kg final, to settle for a silver medal at the the Senior Asian Wrestling Championship 2025.
Peters has had a long rivalry with Chopra
Grappling with unprecedented uncertainty over the fate of the upcoming Indian Super League (ISL) season, the AIFF on Saturday moved in to "calm" fears among its referees, assuring them that their contracts will be renewed "as per established procedure."
Apart from the senior competition, the U-17 and U-23 Asian Championships are set to return to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan for a second straight year. The tournament will take place from June 10 to 18.
A look at NADA's list of suspended athletes reveals that wrestling has the second most dope offenders among all sporting disciplines in India.
The national football team is currently ranked 18th in Asia and the sports ministry's rule states that in team sport, only those in top-eight will get the nod.
The WFI remains suspended by the ministry and IOA has refused to re-introduce the ad-hoc panel, leaving the sport and the future of wrestlers in limbo.
Sports Ministry clears participation of Indian men's and women's football teams in Asian Games
Stimac had said he would need at least a four-week camp to do well in the Asian Cup while the All India Football Federation (AIFF) top brass had indicated that his demand would be difficult to meet as the clubs may not agree to release their players for such a long period in the midst of the domestic season.
The Indian men's team currently occupies the 18th spot among countries under the Asian Football Confederation, while the women's side is ranked 11th.
The IOA ad-hoc committee on Wednesday decided to hold much-awaited Asian Games wrestling trials on July 22-23.
'Thankfully, now nationals will be held. All that the wrestlers need is competition. We are not from any party. We just want the betterment of our sport.'
In the 57kg competition, much was expected from talented Anshu Malik but the 2021 world championship silver medallist struggled to score against Nanjo, the reigning U23 world champion.
Paris Games quota-winning women wrestlers on Friday pleaded with the national federation not to subject them to selection trials, saying that every single step they take and every little thing they do from now on will have a bearing on India's medal chances at the Olympics.
Meet India's top athletes at Olympics 2024.
Several women wrestlers wrote to Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the IOA and the ad-hoc panel running the WFI, requesting "fair trials" for Asian Games.
The World Championships will be held in Budapest from October 20-28.
The reigning U23 Asian champion Sujeet Kalkal slammed the IOA ad-hoc committee for granting direct entry to Bajrang Punia for the Asian Games.
Antim Panghal once again confirmed her emergence as one of the top wrestlers in the country by winning the World Championships trials in Patiala on Friday.
Bajwa, when asked whether Indian grapplers will compete under the United World Wrestling (UWW) flag at the Paris Olympics since the Wrestling Federation of India has been banned by the international body, told PTI that, since the Olympics and Asian Games are multi-discipline events, "they will compete as part of the Indian contingent".
Bajrang Punia said they were ready to sacrifice medals as delivering justice to the victims would be their biggest medal.
The women's national wrestling camp will be held at Sports Authority of India's Patiala centre in future following reservations from multiple female grapplers.
Only one male and five female wrestlers qualified for the upcoming edition. Here's a look at the strength and weakness of all the six contenders.
WFI's ad-hoc panel to work with just one member for at least a week
The 19-year-old Panghal put up a dominant show in the 53kg category, winning all her bouts without much fuss.
Vinesh Phogat failed to put up a fight and was knocked down by Mongolia's Khulan Batkhuyag
The WFI had also applied for visas for nine of its coaches but only six received visas.
Real Madrid's Karim Benzema, who won the 2022 Ballon d'Or award, is also in the shortlist.
Vinesh Phogat outclassed reigning European Champion Emma Malmgren of Sweden 8-0 in the women's 53kg event.
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.
Anshu Malik settled for a silver medal after losing her 57kg final to 2016 Olympic champion Helen Lousie Maroulis but Sarita Mor grabbed her maiden medal at the big stage by winning the 59kg bronze, in Oslo, Norway on Thursday.
Summary of sports events and persons who made news on Tuesday
