Wrestling News: After a long wait, and multiple postponements, the men national camp has kicked off. They will be in quarantine for the next two weeks before they begin training. On Day 1 of the camp they will be tested for covid-19, reports for which will come in a day or two. The exact attendance s currently unknown, however, Bajrang Punia, one of the attendees said that almost everyone has reached. “Few of the wrestlers are yet to join the camp. We do not know the exact reason for it, our coaches will be the best to throw light on it”.
Some wrestlers have locked themselves up in the room as a precautionary measure. The world medallist said that for now we are allowed to eat in our room, it might change once we begin training. “We are allowed to eat in our room for now. Don’t know what will happen later”.
Wrestlers in five freestyle categories — 57kg, 65kg, 74kg, 86kg, and 125kg – and those in the 60kg, 77kg, and 87kg weight groups have been selected for Greco Roman for the month-long camp that has been sanctioned by the Sports Authority of India till September 30.
Olympic-bound 57kg wrestler Ravi Dahiya is among those who have joined the camp. He said the campers have received strict orders from the SAI to follow the COVID-19 protocols.
“I am under quarantine right now, as per to the SAI process. We just hope that everybody stays safe and we can focus on our training. I will do yoga and routine exercise in my room,” Dahiya said.
Dahiya has had some strong performances last year despite the challenges of maintaining his current weight category, 57kg. After clinching a gold medal at the Rome Ranking Series tournament in January this year in the 61kg, he switched his weight to 57kg with the goal of winning gold at the 2020 Asian Wrestling Championships again.
Veteran Indian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt has tipped Dahiya as a medal prospect for the Tokyo Olympics after his fine performances last year.
Despite the postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Dahiya sounded positive. “It is not in our hands. I hope everything will be all right. I am just concentrating on my training. There is enough time [for the Olympics] and it will be wrong to comment on what would happen in the future. So, let’s wait and see what happens and when this virus gets over completely,” he said.
On the other hand, the women’s camp, which was scheduled to start on Tuesday in Lucknow, has been deferred after several women grapplers, including Vinesh Phogat, refused to join it.