Bajrang Punia’s nemesis Takuto Otoguro’s brother also qualifies for Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games

2020 Asian Championship gold medallist Takuto Otoguro has beaten India’s most celebrated wrestler Bajrang Punia every time he has faced him. The wrestling world considers 2018 world champion Otoguro as one of the most talented wrestler in the world. Otoguro has already qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics in the 65kg, now he will have his younger brother to accompany him at the forthcoming Olympic games. Like Takuto, Keisuke Otoguro also qualified for the Olympic Games on Sunday in the 74kg category as he won the trials conducted by the Japan Wrestling Federation.

It will be second time in the Japan wrestling history that two brothers will represent the nation in the same Olympic Games. Before the Otoguro brothers, Yumoto brothers represented Japan at the 2012 London Olympic games.

On Sunday, Japan wrestling federation conducted play-offs for two Olympic categories at the Ajinomoto Training Center in Tokyo. In the play-off for 74kg Otoguro qualified for Olympics and in the 68 kg women’s category 2016 Olympic champion Sara Dosho booked her ticket for the 2020 Olympic. Otoguro defeated 2019 world championship 5th placed wrestler Mao Okui by 5-2 margin and in the women’s 68kg Dosho defeated Miwa Miwaka to win the play-off.

The play-offs were organized with no fans being allowed in the stadium to avoid the spread of the new coronavirus. The press waited in a separate room, watched the game on video and interviewed the players. The host of the Olympic games have already booked 8 quota places for Tokyo 2020 which includes 5 out of 6 in the women category, 2 in Men’s freestyle and 1 in the Greco-Roman category. The wrestlers from the host country will try to book more quota places for Japan via Asian and World Olympic qualifiers.