Indian wrestlers present hopeful image of record-making performance in World Wrestling Championships

With the United World Wrestling’s World Championships drawing closer, the talented Indian contingent is set to offer a real challenge for other competitors in Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan. The tournament is scheduled to begin on September 14 with the Greco-Roma competition followed by the freestyle and women’s wrestling categories that will run until September 22. More than a 1,000 boxers from more than a hundred nations will be vying for success.

The country will be looking forward to top-seed Bajrang Punia to claim a gold medal in the 65kg category and subsequently book his berth in Tokyo. Last year, he had managed to reach the final but had to settle for a silver. He is currently in Russia to fine tune his techniques and has credited his recent success to such international training.

“Training abroad with foreign athletes has helped me grow as a wrestler. Sparring with some of the best names in Georgia, Russia and USA has made me more aware of my opponents. Besides having my own team of coach, physio, trainer and sports science support staff has benefited me a lot and instilled a lot of confidence into me ahead of the World Championships which is also an Olympic qualifier this time,” he was quoted saying by Scroll.in.

In an attempt to prepare wrestlers for the competition as well as next year’s Olympics, UWW has conducted its largest-ever training camp at the Olympic Cycling Centre in Saryarka. The facilities available there have impressed the reigning Asian champion.

“It’s a very good initiative taken by UWW ahead of such a big event. All wrestlers will be eyeing Olympic berths at the World Championships this time and an acclimation camp can help them to be ready for the challenge,” said Punia.

Meanwhile, compatriot and fellow Asian Games gold medallist Vinesh Phogat has not taken part in the camp as she remains in India to complete her training in an attempt to bring back her first-ever World Championships medal. The world number six will be one of India’s main contenders in their respective categories.

The last player to win a gold medal in the competition, Sushil Kumar (74kg) will also be returning to the event eight years after his triumph. Rahul Aware and Seema have also secured top three seeds for themselves, while Deepak Punia has been seeded fourth in 86kg to round off India’s strong list of competitors.

“My training has gone really well and I am excited to make my World Championships debut. Winning a gold at the World Junior Championships last month has boosted my confidence level and I am eager to give my all,” Deepak said.