Wrestling News: No matter how small it may be, every person has one moment which changed his or her life forever. There are plentiful examples of such instances from every corner of life including wrestling. Today WrestlingTV brings you top 10 such moments from Indian wrestlers’ life which changed their life forever.
Vinesh Phogat:
India has never produced a dominant force in women wrestling like Vinesh Phogat. The wrestler is considered amongst the best lightweight wrestlers. But her rise to the top came only after the 2016 Olympics quarterfinals match where she suffered a ligament tear in her knee. This proved to be the turning point of her life. After this, Vinesh saw an exponential rise in her career. In the past three years, she has won seven medals including two gold and silver and three bronze. She is the only Indian woman wrestler to have qualified for the Olympics and would like to complete her incomplete Olympic dream in Tokyo.
Narsingh Yadav:
Narsingh was once hailed as the golden boy of Indian wrestling. The bullish career had suddenly become bearish after he failed the dope test. He was immediately handed a four-year ban which had come into effect just before the Rio Olympics 2016. This incident became the turning point of his career. He has been out from competitions for the past four years, and now, set his eyes to the Tokyo Olympics when competition resumes.
Mausam Khatri:
The 2016 Bharat Kesari dangal had changed his life forever. He won Rs 1cr in it and with the eight digits on the winner’s cheque, all good things also came into his life. In an interview with Indian Express, the wrestler said that it is only after winning the dangal that marriage proposals had come his way — which previously had stopped. He also upgraded his car and bought an SUV.
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Sushil Kumar:
Sushil Kumar has become synonymous to Indian wrestling. It is him because of whom the current and next-generation wrestlers think of winning at the Olympics. Sushil’s life changed upside down after the 2008 Olympic bronze medal. He became the second Indian to win a medal for India. But the biggest glory came when he won the 2012 silver medal, making him the only Indian to win two Olympic medals.
Sakshi Malik:
When Sakshi had boarded the flight for the Rio Olympics 2016, little did she know, her entire life would change for good. The wrestler became the first Indian woman wrestler to win an Olympic medal.
Sunil Kumar:
‘It is common to have freestyle wrestlers achieve great heights in India’ — this was a common perception until Haryana’s Sunil Kumar ended India’s long wait for an Asian Championship gold in Greco-Roman wrestling. He is the flag bearer for Greco Roman wrestling in India and is dubbed as the biggest hope for India at the Olympics.
Sonam Malik:
She is still in her teen years and beating the Olympic medallist is the biggest highlight of her career until now. Sonam is India’s best 62kg women wrestler and she proved it on two occasions by beating Sakshi in the national trials.
Anshu:
Just like Sonam, Anshu had risen to the top after defeating 2018 world medallist Pooja Dhanda in the national trials. She is now considered the best wrestler in the 57kg.
Geeta Phogat:
If Sonika Kaliaraman and Geetika Jhakar had set the founding stone for Indian women wrestling, Geeta is known to revolutionise it especially after winning the 2010 Commonwealth Games. It is this journey to the top on which Bollywood movie Dangal is based.
Gursharan Preet Kaur:
Probably the least known Indian wrestler from the lot but she deserves to stay in the list. Gursharan’s life changed when she decided to return to the mat after 13-year hiatus during which she faced a lot of hardship. Her decision of the comeback has changed her life completely and now takes care of her daughter and mother as a lone warrior.