MUMBAI: The only two active Olympics medalists in Indian wrestling, Sushil Kumar and Sakshi
Malik, were included in ‘Grade A’ as the Wrestling Federation of India handed out central contracts in Mumbai on Wednesday. Both Sushil and Sakshi were earlier listed in Grade B, while Pooja Dhanda, Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia were the ones in Grade A.
“I would like to admit that it was a mistake (on our part) and we are rectifying the mistake and are now including both the players (Sakshi and Sushil) to A grade,” WFI President Brijbhushan Sharan Singh said on Tuesday.
“The players did not complain about it or take their grievance to the media,” he added. “During the national championships at Gonda when our full body (organisation members) was present, we realised that players like Sushil (Kumar), a two-time Olympic medallist, and Sakshi Malik, who gave the country the
first medal when India's medal tally (at the Rio Olympics) was empty, should not be kept in B grade.”
The WFI is the only national sports governing body, apart from the Board of Control for Cricket in India, to issue central contracts. And according to the newly-minted system, players in Grade A will receive Rs 30 lakh per year while those in Grade C will get Rs 10 lakh. Central contracts were handed out to 144
players, in different grades.
While wrestling has been one of India’s strongest disciplines at multi-sport events, the game got a shot in the arm as Tata Motors came on board as the principal sponsors in August. As the next step in their collaboration, the Tata Motors Elite Wrestlers Development Programme was launched in Mumbai on Wednesday.
According to the programme, foreign coaches will be roped in, as early as January 2019, for the men’s and women’s team. In keeping with the times, they will assemble an army of support staff — trainers, physios, mental health specialists, masseurs, biomechanics experts and nutritionists — to keep the wrestlers in the best possible shape. Also, the players will get 50 or more days of exposure trips.
The programme seems timely, given that qualifying events for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics will start next year.