CHENNAI: Not long ago wrestler Ronak Dahiya had suffered twin setbacks. The first one was when he lost the final bout in the 130kg weight category against Deepanshu during the selection trials of Greco-Roman wrestlers thus missing out on a berth in the Indian team for the 2026 Asian Games. A day later, his father Jaibir Singh, a former wrestler, was served a show-cause notice for conflict of interest by the Wrestling Federation of India for assuming the role of his son's coach despite being appointed as a referee there.
Ronak, probably the only international wrestler in the country to wrestle in both styles, later got selected in the freestyle national squad for UWW tournaments. But it was nowhere close to the Asian Games. Gearing up for the U20 World Championships scheduled in Bratislava, Slovakia from August 16 to 23, Ronak received a pleasant surprise when he was named in the Asiad Games-bound squad. As Deepanshu, the wrestler who defeated him in the final, was removed from the list for doping violation, Ronak made it to the team by virtue of being second in the selection trials.
"Yes we have replaced Deepanshu with Ronak in the Asian Games squad. Anyway his name was already there in the long list. This is Deepanshu's second dope offence and he is facing a long eight-year ban," a WFI official said.
The call from WFI came as a breath of fresh air for Jaibir, who lost his mother a few days ago. "My mother suffered a heart attack and passed away on her way to the hospital. The mourning is still going on but Ronak's inclusion in the Asian Games squad is a pleasant news amid grief," Jaibir told this daily.
However, the inclusion also posed a big challenge before Ronak as the U20 Worlds is only a few days ago where he will be competing in 125kg weight category in freestyle.
"So far, his name is there in the U20 Worlds team. Importantly, he is part of the national camp training in both styles. But again we will follow whatever instructions we receive from the WFI. If the federation asks him to focus on Greco-Roman from now onwards, he will do that. No doubt, Asian Games holds more importance that the junior world championships," the father said.
Wrestlers selected for the Asian Games are scheduled to fly out of the country for training-cum-exposure tour soon. While the freestyle wrestlers along with their respective sparring partners will train in Armenia before moving to Russia to take part in a tournament, the Greco-Roman wrestlers will head to Uzbekistan. With the teams expected to head to their respective destinations in the next few days, Ronak has to take a call soon.
