CHENNAI: Gaurav Baliyan was not even seven when Sushil Kumar won his first Olympic medal in 2008. The 18-year-old from Shoron village in Uttar Pradesh’s Muzaffarnagar district, however, will be the opponent to beat in the 74kg category if Sushil wishes to compete in the second Olympic qualifier scheduled in Xian, China, from March 27 to 29.
The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has announced that aspirants have to undergo selection trials to book berths in the national squad for the Asian Continental Qualification Tournament. The trials scheduled on January 3 and 4 will also help the grapplers seal berths for the Asian Championships, hosting rights of which were awarded to India recently. The event is slated in New Delhi from February 18 to 23.
Gaurav had touched opponent Parveen Rana’s feet as a mark of respect after defeating him in the national championship final in Jalandhar to qualify for the South Asian Games. Sushil had skipped the event. The teenager plans to show respect in the same way when he meets Sushil in the trials.
“I have never met him. I could have competed against him (Sushil) in the selection trials held for the World Championships earlier this year, but I failed to reach the final. I respect him. But when I wrestle against him, I will try to give my best,” Gaurav, who is attending a national camp in Sonepat, told this newspaper on Sunday.
Hailing from a modest background, Gaurav lost his father to cancer when he was just six. Having started wrestling at the age of nine, he shifted to coach Nirdosh Baliyan’s academy in 2013.
“Ever since he started training in my academy, the goal has been an Olympic medal. Before the nationals,
Gaurav has 10 per cent chance of qualifying for the Olympics, but now I believe it’s 50:50,” the coach said.The prospect of taking on a two-time Olympic medallist can make an athlete nervous, but Nirdosh says his ward likes to compete against big names.
“Ahead of the bout against Parveen in the national championship, he couldn’t sleep the whole night and it was not because of nervousness. Instead, it was his excitement and eagerness to compete. It will
be the same if and when he meets Sushil.”
Gaurav will not get a chance to watch his probable opponent closely during the national camp, as Sushil is training at New Delhi’s Chhatrasal Stadium with foreign coaches. Given his form this year wherein he has won a gold each in the junior, under-23 and senior nationals apart from the South Asian Games, Gaurav can afford to meet the famed opponent as confident as one can be.