Grapplers Vinesh, Anshu seal Paris Olympics quota
Vinesh, one of the main faces of the wrestlers’ protest last year, defeated Kazakhstan’s Laura Ganikyzy in the 50kg semifinal to inch closer to competing at her third straight Olympics.
Asian Games medallist Vinesh Phogat, one of the prominent faces of the wrestlers’ protest that rocked the sport for the past one year, will hope for a winning return to action after 16 months, as the star grappler will be one of the main attractions at the “official” Senior National Wrestling championships in Jaipur.
The 29-year-old will, however, compete in the 55kg weight division, a non-Olympic category, instead of her preferred 53kg weight class in the competition that takes place on the backdrop of an ongoing tussle between the Anurag Thakur-led sports ministry and the Sanjay Singh-led Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), suspended shortly after the elections in December and replaced by an ad-hoc panel.
The suspended WFI had recently conducted their own Nationals in Pune, which the ministry went on to describe as an ‘unsanctioned event’. The Jaipur event will allow the wrestlers a perfect opportunity to clinch a few of the quota places for the Paris Olympics, later in the year. As of now, only Antim Panghal (53kg) has managed to bag an Olympic quota, after winning the world championship bronze in Belgrade last year.
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Among the other top names hoping to bag the Olympic quota places are Anshu Malik (59kg), Sarita More (59kg), Nisha Dahiya (68kg) and Sunil Kumar (87kg). Both Vinesh and Anshu are making their comebacks to the mat after sustaining knee injuries, with the two-time World Championships bronze medallist Vinesh, having last made an appearance at a major event back in the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.
Vinesh, who was slated to return to the mat during the Asian Games to defend her crown, had to undergo a surgery on her knee, delaying her return. Having started her practice only in December, it will be interesting to see how Vinesh fares on the mat when she represents the Railways at the Nationals.
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