Aman Sehrawat (L), Sakshi Malik, Bajrang Punia (R). (Picture Credit: AFP)
A total of seven wrestlers have managed to win an Olympic medal for India, with KD Jadhav being the first to achieve the feat during the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
Aman Sehrawat created history on Friday (August 9) by becoming the youngest Indian to win an Olympic medal. The 21-year-old wrestler from Haryana defeated Darian Cruz of Puerto Rico 13-5 in the bronze medal match of the 57 kg free-style category. Before him, PV Sindhu held the title of being India’s youngest Olympic podium finisher after she claimed a silver in the 2016 Games at the age of 21 years, one month, and 14 days.
Sehrawat has not even completed a month since turning 21. His effort helped India win its sixth medal and move closer to the Tokyo Games tally of seven. By securing a podium finish in Paris, Sehrawat joined an elite list of Indian wrestlers who have managed to win an Olympic medal.
Here’s a look at seven Indian wrestlers who won Olympic medals:
KD Jadhav (1952): Legendary Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav was the first Indian to win an Olympic medal in wrestling. He achieved the feat during the 1952 edition of the games, which were held in Helsinki. Jadhav managed to secure a bronze medal in the men’s freestyle 57 kg competition.
Sushil Kumar (2008, 2012): Sushil Kumar won a bronze medal for India in the men’s freestyle 66 kg category during the 2008 Beijing Olympics and four years later secured a silver medal in the same category during the 2012 London Olympics. By securing podium finishes in 2008 and 2012, Sushil became the first Indian to win a medal in back-to-back Olympic games.
Yogeshwar Dutt (2012): Yogeshwar Dutt won a bronze medal for India in the men’s freestyle 60 kg weight category at the 2012 London Olympics. He had suffered a defeat against Besik Kudukhov in his 1/8 finals, but after the Russian qualified for the final, Dutt got a chance to feature in the repechage, where he won three matches in a row to bag the bronze medal.
Sakshi Malik (2016): Sakshi Malik created history at the 2016 Rio Olympics by becoming the first Indian female wrestler to win an Olympic medal. She secured a third-place finish in the women’s 58 kg freestyle competition. Like Dutt, she also got a chance to fight for the medal via repechage after she lost her ¼ finals against Valeria Koblova of Russia, who then qualified for the final.
Ravi Dahiya (2021): Ravi Dahiya became the second Indian wrestler after Sushil to win a silver medal in the Olympics after he finished second in the men’s freestyle 57 kg competition at the Tokyo Olympics. Dahiya had qualified for the final by winning three matches comfortably, but he failed to get the better of ROC’s Zaur Uguev in the gold medal match on August 5, 2021.
Bajrang Punia (2021): Bajrang Punia also secured a podium finish for India in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. The former world No. 1 wrestler lost his freestyle 65 kg semi-final match against Haji Aliyev of Azerbaijan but managed to get the better of Kazakhstan’s Daulet Niyazbekov by a margin of 8-0 in the bronze medal match.
Aman Sehrawat (2024): Aman Sehrawat was the only male wrestler for India in the 2024 Paris Olympics, and he lived up to the expectations by winning bronze. The youngster lost his semi-final match in the 57 kg free-style category on Thursday against gold medallist Rei Higuchi of Japan, but won the bronze medal match with a scoreline of 13-5 on Friday.
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