London Olympics: 15 days to go; Wrest assured

Were you astonished by Sushil Kumar’s Beijing feat? Well, he promises more surprises. He backs India’s wrestlers to finish among the medal winners in London. Misplaced confidence? Not quite.

Narsingh Yadav has been around in the 66kg weight category; he has beaten almost all the top wrestlers. Amit Kumar is the youngest of the lot. He has made steady progress in the 55kg category and could fox the best with agility and speed.
There’s Sushil himself in the 66kg category. Not to forget his longtime friend and Akhara partner Yogeshwar Dutt in the 60kg category. Both impressed in Beijing. Just that Yogeshwar ran out of luck and missed the medal by a whisker, while Sushil created history.

“To be honest, the last time around he was unlucky to have just missed the medal. This year I expect him to win. It’s difficult to predict which medal, as draws play an important role,” Sushil said before his departure to the US and Belarus for the final leg of his preparations. Training at high altitude, he believed, has helped in building endurance.

He is humble about his chances. “Expectations put a great deal of pressure on any wrestler. I won the gold at the World Championship in Moscow and a spate of injuries since then pegged me back. One day you are on top, the next day you struggle to stand on your feet,” said Sushil, who qualified for the Games after winning the World Qualifying Tournament in China in June.

He hasn’t been at his best and he’s forthright about it. “But now that I’ve no injury concerns, I’m focussed. My body is in the right shape and our training has been going as per plan. There’s no reason why we can’t win a medal in each category,” the grappler asserted.

This is his third Olympics, possibly his last shot at winning gold. He feels he has matured and can give his best. “Everything changed after I won bronze in Beijing. That was my proudest moment; I became a household name,” he said.

India’s grapplers have been training at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) Centre in Sonepat for the last few months. The bonhomie and camaraderie they shared was evident. It’s like one happy family living together where Sushil, the most senior, is like a big brother.

Yogeshwar owes his career resurgence to him. He has been with Sushil since the World Cadet Championship in 1999. Two years ago, he suffered a fatal knee injury. It was India’s Beijing hero who willed him on to have another shot at the Olympics.
“If losing the quarterfinal bout in Beijing was heartbreaking, suffering a career-threatening knee injury was even more depressing,” Yogeshwar said. “I thought my career was over, but Sushil kept motivating me for a comeback.”

So where does India’s lone woman wrestler Geeta Phogat stand? She defeated Korea’s Um Ji-Eun in the Asian Qualifying Tournament in March to fetch the gold in the 55kg weight category and qualify for the Olympics.

“If I can qualify for the Olympics,” she asserted, “why can’t I win a medal there too. I’ve the skills to pull it off for the country.” 

Before travelling to Colorado Springs, the 23-year-old said that training in the US would definitely improve her performance. “We get to compete with different partners and learn new movements,” said Phogat, who hails from the wrestling fraternity. Her father Mahavir Singh is a known name in the sport.

Coach OP Yadav thinks Phogat’s mental toughness sets her apart. Yadav said, “She is tough and confident. It’s difficult to say whether she would win a medal, but I can vouch that she can beat anyone on her day.”