A FALLACIOUS WORLD WITHIN WRESTLING BODY
One of the most prominent medal contenders in the Indian contingent was wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt. He looked just not at his best in the 65kg freestyle bout against Mongolia's Mandakhnaran Ganzorig. After seeing him drag through the 0-3 loss, one was left wondering whether he was 100 per cent fit. There have been persistent rumours that the 33-year-old wrestler has been struggling with injuries and had an issue with his knee. If that is true, then it's about time we raise a few questions concerning India's wrestling federations and its selection policy for the Games. The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), through erratic and unprofessional calls, made a mess of the Narsingh Yadav doping issue. It resulted in India having no representation in the 74kg freestyle division. Dutt's performance hinted that India fielded a wrestler who was not fully fit, and a few months back, the WFI almost prevented medallist Sakshi Malik from qualifying for the Games. It seems the federation is letting go of the momentum the sport gained in the last eight years, after Sushil Kumar's bronze in Beijing.
The whole controversy over Sushil Kumar's participation in the Games stemmed from dirty politicking rather than merit. A two-time Olympic medal winner was not given a chance to try and qualify as the world body rules don't allow for participation in quota tournaments if the country has already earned a berth in a particular weight category. Narsingh Yadav had earned the berth for India in the 74kg at the World Championships last year. A trial should have been Sushil's right but Yadav has just too much political backing for that to happen. The case of Yadav being subsequently caught in a dope test shows just how sordid the wrestling underbelly of India is.
The case of bronze medallist Malik is almost as bad. She was not allowed to take part in the first qualifying event for Rio where federation favourite, Geeta Phogat, was sent. Subsequently, Phogat had to be suspended for disciplinary issues and that gave Malik a chance. Now, had Phogat got the berth in her first attempt, Malik wouldn't have gone to Rio.