India's wrestling prodigy Antim Panghal, soared to new heights with a stunning victory over Sweden’s two-time European champion, Emma Jonna Denise Malmgren to clinch the bronze medal at the World Wrestling Championships 2023 held in Belgrade, Serbia.
In a nail-biting event on Thursday, Panghal, known for her formidable track record as a two-time U20 world champion, once again proved her mettle by dominating Malmgren with a remarkable 16-6 victory by technical superiority. Her triumph not only added another feather in her cap but also secured India's first Olympic quota in wrestling for the much-anticipated Paris 2024 Summer Games.
Athletes' participation in the Olympics is a matter of national pride, and their representation hinges upon the decisions of the National Olympic Committees (NOC). The NOC holds the exclusive authority to select athletes, ensuring the best of the best represent their countries. With Panghal's recent accolades, her representation at Paris 2024 seems promising.
The road to her bronze victory wasn't without its challenges. Panghal began her campaign by stunning the wrestling world with a victory over the 2022 world champion, Dominique Olivia Parrish of the USA, with a close 3-2 score. The Indian powerhouse continued her momentum, clinching a win over Poland’s Roksana Marta Zasina and Russia’s Natalia Malysheva in successive rounds. However, her journey met a hurdle when Vanesa Kaladzinskaya of Belarus edged her out in a closely contested semi-final with a score of 5-4.
While Panghal emerged as the torchbearer for Indian wrestling, the day had its set of ups and downs for other Indian contenders. Gurpreet Singh, a 2019 Asian Championships silver medallist, and Ajay faced defeats in the Greco-Roman wrestling round of 32 bouts. Simultaneously, Sajan, India's first Greco-Roman medallist at the U23 World Championships, and Mehar Singh exited during the qualification round.
Furthermore, the week witnessed challenges for the Indian male wrestling contingent. Ten of India's finest couldn’t clinch a medal or secure an Olympic quota. Abhimanyu, representing the men’s 70kg freestyle, fell short in his pursuit of a medal, losing the bronze play-off to Armenia's Arman Andreasyan.
On the women's front, grapplers Manisha, Priyanka, and Jyoti Berwal failed to make it to the medal rounds in their respective categories.
Compounding the challenges, the Indian wrestling team is representing under the United World Wrestling (UWW) flag due to the suspension of the Wrestling Federation Of India (WFI). Despite the adversities, Antim Panghal's victory brings hope and sets the stage for the forthcoming events and the Paris 2024 Olympics.
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