2026 Asian Games: Indian grapplers seeking medal balm in Japan

CHENNAI: They have always been among medals that's why wrestlers are expected to finish on podium whenever they represent the country in marquee events like the Olympics and Asian Games. With most wrestling heavyweights hailing from the Asian continent, competitions remain tough in the multi-disciplinary meet. But over the years, India have established themselves as one of the powerhouses.

As usual expectations were high when a squad of 18 (six each in women wrestling, men's freestyle and Greco-Roman) was selected following trials on May 30 and 31 for the Games beginning in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan on September 19. With months in their disposal, the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) even sent its men wrestlers overseas for exposure-cum-training camp. Freestyle grapplers went to Armenia while their Greco-Roman counterparts departed for Uzbekistan. But when it looked like everything was going on as per plan, all hell broke loose with selected wrestlers failing dope tests.

Deepanshu (130kg, GR) was the first to return dope positive followed by Mukul Dahiya, a strong medal contender in the 86kg freestyle wrestling. Having already lost two weight categories due to doping ban, the WFI was hoping for no further setback when another Greco-Roman wrestler, Deepak, who won the selection trials in the 67kg weight category, got caught in dope net. It not only reduced India's participation by three but also changed the narrative. Wrestlers, who till then were considered serious medal contenders, were suddenly being looked upon as serial offenders.

Fortunately, none of the selected women wrestlers got embroiled in the controversy so far and that could be termed as a big relief for an otherwise worried federation. Given the situation, coaches are putting their money on women wrestlers more than their male counterparts even if they strongly believe Indian wrestlers in general will start a medal rush in Japan.

"The preparation went excellently, and everyone was pleased. We had very little time to get ready for the Asian Games, but we prepared as thoroughly as possible within that short window. As for the outcome, we will strive to achieve the best possible result and bring joy to our supporters," Georgia's Emzarios Shako Bentinidis, men's freestyle coach, told this daily. Shako, who earlier helped Bajrang Punia win bronze at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, hailed the WFI for doing everything to ensure the wrestlers succeed.

Shako also complimented the women wrestlers, terming them a talented lot. "The women's team is making great progress; there is a talented generation coming up, and we need to capitalize on that." Admitting the competition at the Games would be tough, Shako affirmed the Indian wrestlers will vie for gold. Notably, India didn't win a wrestling gold in the previous edition. "Regarding last year's Asian Games — where we didn't win a medal — the competition in Asia is extremely tough right now; even top-tier national teams sometimes walk away without gold. However, we have the resources and the drive to win gold."

The WFI appointed three foreign coaches including Shako and a high-performance director ahead of the Games. Japan’s Kosei Akaishi was brought in for the women wrestlers while Gogi Koguashvili was named the coach for men’s Greco-Roman. American Ian Butler was appointed the high-performance director.

Butler echoed Shako's sentiments and said Indian wrestlers are gonna play for a lot of medals even if their opponents are from top wrestling nations like Japan and Iran. "I know Japan are favourites but we will be right behind them," the American opined for the women wrestlers. For the male wrestlers, Butler said, "They will face a tough challenge but a podium finish can definitely be expected in quite a few categories."

With two-time World Championships medallist Antim Panghal and Olympic bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat along with former Asiad medallist Deepak Punia and Sunil Kumar in the fray, Indian wrestlers are expected to continue their trend of winning medals at the event. But to heal the wound of doping just before the Games, they have to win a bagful of medals with at least a couple of top of podium finishes.