The rise of Indian athletes has been on the news for a while now. We’ve heard about cricket, badminton, football, running, etc. There’s another sport in which India is rising and that is Wrestling. World Wrestling Championship took place in between 14th September to 22nd September at Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan.
India had its best medal haul this time in World Wrestling Championship bagging one silver and four bronze medals. The following are the details of our wrestlers and their path to achievement!
World Wrestling Championship 2019 Winners:
Rahul Aware bagged the bronze medal in the 61kg category after defeating his opponent Tyler Lee Graff with the final score 11-4. Initially Aware was down by two points but our hero put up a great fight and helped India by bagging the fourth bronze!
Our top wrestler, Bajrang Punia from Haryana, had to settle for the bronze in the 65kg category. Punia lost to Kazakhstan local favorite Daulet Niyazbekov in the semi-final after the judges made certain controversial decisions. Punia said in an interview that Indian wrestlers have been facing biased decisions for a while now and authorities are finally questioning it. However, the lionheart has decided to let this go and focus on the upcoming 2020 Tokyo Olympics!
Deepak Punia, India’s fifth senior World Championship finalist, had to pull out of the finals in the 86kg freestyle category because of an ankle injury. This was India’s only shot at the gold but the injury was serious. All things considered, this is a heartbreaking moment for the nation and for Punia himself. However, we’re sure he will perform outstandingly in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.
Our next winner is Vinesh Phogat. She is the sole Indian woman to have won a medal at the World Wrestling Championships. Her valiant fights led her to bag the bronze medal in the 53kg category. She shifted to this category earlier this year. Following this win, she qualified for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Now, she is being considered a great chance for India to bag a medal in the Olympics.
The final bronze for India was bagged by Ravi Kumar Dahiya. He won the bronze in the 57kg category and has secured a position for himself in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics as well!
Looking Forward to 2020!
Our wrestlers have performed greatly in the World Wrestling Championship, it is safe to say the Olympics will be another treat for sore eyes! There will be at least two more qualifying rounds for the Olympics. This means other wrestlers still have a chance to make it to the Olympics!
India’s brilliant performance at the World Wrestling Championships 2019 has given us hope. It is time that we raise a toast to every athlete of India who is doing their part to bring India honor!