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Star wrestler Ravi Dahiya’s Paris Olympics dreams came to a staggering halt on Tuesday, 21 May after the Wrestling Federation of India decided against holding a final trial. WFI said on Tuesday that the six wrestlers, who secured quota to after winning the earlier trials in March 2024. The decision means that Vinesh Phogat (50kg), Antim Panghal (53kg), Anshu Malik (57kg), Nisha Dahiya (68kg), Reetika Hooda (76kg) and Aman Sehrawat (57kg) will qualify for the Paris Olympics, set to be held in the month of July-August.<\/p>\n
The decision comes after much deliberation with the WFI who were in two minds. There were arguments on both sides as a set of wrestlers demanded another trial process, while the other ones did not want to go through the painful process of an extra weight cut ahead of the Olympics.<\/p>\n
The WFI had earlier said that it would conduct one final trial to select the wrestlers who will represent the country at the Paris Games, starting July 26.<\/p>\n
According to the criteria explained earlier, it was said that the wrestlers, who finished in the top-four at the last trials will compete against each other and the winner from the group will fight it out with the quota winner.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe WFI has called a selection committee meeting in Delhi on May 21 to decide on the selection criteria. The two chief coaches in both styles (men\u2019s freestyle and women) will be part of the discussions,\u201d a WFI source had earlier told PTI.<\/p>\n
On the day, star Indian wrestlers Ravi Dahiya (men\u2019s 57kg) and Sarita Mor (women\u2019s 57kg) suffered a heartbreak.<\/p>\n
Dronacharya awardee Lalit Kumar, who is the head coach at Chhatarasal Stadium in Delhi, explained why trials are not required.<\/p>\n
\u201cMost of our wrestlers have qualified very recently. It\u2019s not that they qualified a year back and their fitness and form need to be assessed. Sometimes the wrestler loses form or gets injured, so you need to assess them, if they are India\u2019s best bet in their category because athletes can actually hide their injuries.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo in this case, five of the six wrestlers have earned quotas in less than one month\u2019s time. They were the best in their categories, so they won the trials and competed in Bishkek and Istanbul.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo their fitness and form is before everyone. Yes, for someone like Antim Panghal, who qualified at World Championships last year, WFI needs to know if she is carrying any injury, for others it\u2019s not required,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Aman had also expressed concerns about trials, saying it\u2019s time to focus on preparation for the Games and not getting ready for another painful process of weight-cut.<\/p>\n