The World under-23 champion rallied to beat Atish Todkar 14-4 on his way to winning the top spot for the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023.
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Indian wrestler Aman Sehrawat emerged victorious in the men’s freestyle 57kg category at the selection trials for the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023 held in Delhi on Friday. The World under-23 champion rallied to beat Atish Todkar 14-4 on his way to winning the top spot. With Olympic silver medallist Ravi Dahiya out due to a knee injury, Sehrawat claimed the right to represent India at the event. Dahiya sustained a knee injury during a practice bout at the Chhatrasal Stadium on February 6, 2023. Subsequent scans showed grade 2 tears on his right knee in Medial Collateral Ligament (MCL) and Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL). As a result, Dahiya could not take part in the selection trials.
The Asian Wrestling Championships 2023 were initially scheduled to be held in Delhi. But, due to the ongoing inquiry by the Government-appointed Oversight Committee into the allegations leveled by some prominent wrestlers against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) officials and coaches, the event has been shifted to Astana, Kazakhstan. The oversight committee was also given the responsibility to look after the day-to-day work of the WFI during the inquiry period.
Deepak Punia, the Birmingham 2022 gold medalist and former 86kg Worlds silver medalist who had earlier sided with the protesters, took the position in the 92kg category. Mulayam Yadav, a World junior bronze medalist, fought back to upset Commonwealth Games gold medalist Naveen Malik to secure the 70kg spot. Yash Tushir, the National Games champion, defeated National champion Sagar Jaglan to secure his place in the 74kg category. Promising wrestler Jaglan, who was close to winning a medal at the World Championships in 2022, missed out on the 74kg slot for the Asian Championships.
Anuj Kumar defeated World junior bronze medalist Sujeet Kalkal to emerge as the best in the 65kg category. Anuj Kumar defeated World junior bronze medalist Sujeet Kalkal to emerge as the best in the 65kg category. He was one of the five wrestlers to get into the trials through a court order after being deemed ineligible as per the oversight committee’s criteria.
Read more: Court permits Wrestlers to participate in Asian Championship trials
Olympic bronze medalist Bajrang Punia, one of the protesting wrestlers, was the most notable absentee in the 65kg category. Punia continued to stay away from the international competitions as a result of the ongoing investigation. Punia had also missed the Ranking one and two series, earlier held this year. The oversight committee conducted the selection trials amidst the ongoing inquiry into the allegations of mismanagement and corruption leveled against the WFI officials and coaches. With several prominent wrestlers protesting against the WFI, the selection process was caught in controversy. However, the results of the trials have been accepted, and the selected wrestlers will now represent India at the Asian Wrestling Championships in Astana. Despite the absence of some of India’s top wrestlers, the selected wrestlers are expected to put up a strong showing at the continental event.
Read more: Sports Ministry displeased with wrestlers for skipping Wrestling events
Men’s Freestyle: Aman Sehrawat (57kg), Pankaj (61kg), Anuj Kumar (65kg), Mulayam Yadav (70kg), Yash Tushir (74kg), Deepak (79kg), Jonty Kumar (86kg), Deepak Punia (92kg), Deepak Nehra (97kg), Anirudh (125kg).
Greco Roman: Rupin (55kg), Sumit (60kg), Neeraj (63kg), Ashu (67kg), Vikas (72kg), Sajan Bhanwala (77kg), Rohit Dahiya (82kg), Sunil Kumar (87kg), Narender Cheema (97kg), Naveen (130kg).
Read more: United World Wrestling (UWW) Calendar 2023: Know the Important Events for the Upcoming Year