CHENNAI: Ever since she first competed at the continental championships eight years ago, Vinesh Phogat has been chasing the elusive gold in the event. The 26-year-old grappler from Haryana came close to winning the title thrice (2015, 17 and 18) but could only manage to finish second. Incidentally, she was defeated in all those summit clashes either by Japanese or Chinese wrestlers.
With no participants from these countries at the ongoing Asian Championships in Almaty, Vinesh finally secured her maiden title without even conceding a point on Friday. “It’s good that she has finally clinched the Asian gold. She will be returning to the country on Saturday and train here at the Pratap Sports School in Kharkhoda,” coach Om Prakash Dahiya told this daily.
Before Friday, Vinesh had won seven medals at the meet including four bronze. Also, it was her third consecutive gold since she made a return to the international circuit after Covid-19 halted the international sporting calendar. India won three gold and a silver on Day 4 of the event with Anshu Malik (57kg) and Divya Kakran (72kg) winning titles in their respective weight categories. The 2016 Rio Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik, however, lost the final to finish second in 65kg.
“Four gold, one silver and two bronze medals meant we were ranked second in the women’s event. Mongolia finished first while hosts Kazakhstan stood third,” said national chief coach Kuldeep Malik.
Earlier, Sarita Mor (59kg) had won a gold on Thursday retaining her title and becoming the first Indian woman to do so. Divya Kakran matched the feat by winning the consecutive gold at the championships. She had won 68kg gold at the 2020 edition held in New Delhi.
Seema (50kg) and Pooja (76kg) were the other women wrestlers from the country to medal at the event.
They had pocketed a bronze medal each in their respective weight categories. Ace grappler Bajrang Punia (65kg), Ravi Dahiya (57kg), Narsingh Yadav (79kg) and Deepak Punia (86kg) will be in action in the next two days starting Saturday.