CHENNAI: Wrestler Neha Sangwan might be just 17 but her international records for the past two years look impeccable. She competed in two tournaments this year winning gold in both with the latest coming at the ongoing U17 World Championships in Amman, Jordan on Thursday.
Before this, she had won gold in the U17 Asian Championships. This year, Neha won all eight bouts scoring 74 points and conceding only four. It was a shade better than 2023 wherein she won seven out of eight bouts across two tournaments winning a gold (U17 Asian C'ships) and a bronze (U17 Worlds) respectively.
Going by the numbers, Neha certainly is the star in the making. What makes her story more interesting is the fact that she is from Balali, Vinesh Phogat's village and has been drawing inspiration from the two-time Worlds medallist for years.
On a day when Indian women clinched as many as four gold medals, Neha's feat stood out as she defeated Japanese So Tsutsui 10-0 in the 57kg final by technical superiority to change her previous year's bronze into gold. The Indian wrestler was ranked 14 while her counterpart from Japan was world no 3.
Neha hails from a wrestling family as her grandfather Kartar Singh and father Amit Sangwan were also wrestlers in their youth. "We garlanded Vinesh on her return to Balali from Paris. She is not only an inspiration to Neha but also for women wrestlers from across the country," father Amit told this daily.
Earlier, Neha pinned Mairi Mani of Greece in her opening bout before defeating Georgia's Miranda Kapanadze 10-0 via technical superiority in the quarterfinal. Throughout her gold-winning campaign, she conceded points only to Anna Stratan of Kazakhstan in the semifinal wherein she won 8-4.
Back with a bang
Pulkit is another Indian wrestler who pocketed gold. The yellow metal in the 65kg, however, felt like an Olympic gold for the wrestler and her family as she was returning to the international competition after a gap of more than two years following surgery on her right knee. "I cannot describe the feeling in words. When she won the trials for the competition we both cried a lot. Had I been in Jordan, we would have done the same," Parbhat Kandola, Pulkit's father told this daily.
Parbhat is an electrical engineer and works for a construction company in Jind, Haryana. He always wanted his daughter to pursue wrestling but the injury during the 2022 U17 Asian Championships has almost shattered his dream. Before that, he used to run an electrical shop but has to shut it down to attend to the needs of her daughter, who was only 15 then.
"The dream was almost over but my college mate Amit Joon, who runs a construction company, came to my rescue. He not only gave me a job but also made sure my daughter got operated on by Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala in Mumbai. I can never repay him for whatever he has done for my daughter and me," added the father.
For six months, Pulkit tried to heal the ligament injury through physiotherapy on an advice from the experts but finally opted for the surgery as there was no improvements. She underwent the operation in January 2023 and was in rehabilitation for the next eight months. "All her counterparts were participating and winning medals during that period. It was difficult to keep her motivated but she never lost hope. The gold in Jordan is a reminder that you can achieve your dreams if you pursue it with dedication," signed off the father.
Community wrestling centre
Unlike Neha and Pulkit, wrestler Aditi, who won 43kg gold, is a product of a community wrestling centre in Daulatabad, Gurgaon. The centre was started by wrestling connoisseurs including Aditi's father Swapan Janghu, who competed in state-level competitions. "The centre helped our children pursue wrestling seriously. We made sure wrestlers get all the facilities including mat. We have also hired an NIS qualified coach for the purpose.
Aditi's medal will fuel more dreams in our locality now," hoped Swapan.
Meanwhile, Mansi Lather also bagged 73kg gold in the competition. Her father Jai Bhagwan is a wrestling coach and has accompanied the team to the venue. On Friday, Shrutika Shivaji Patil lost the 46kg final to settle for silver while Bala Raj and Muskan won 40kg and 53kg bronze. Kajal beat Rybak Oleksandra of Ukraine in the 69kg final and Ranjita won the 61kg bronze late on Friday night.