Harpal Singh Bedi/ New Delhi
Indian Wrestlers selected for the Jakarta Asian Games on Sunday promised to bring glory to the country by winning more medals in this quadrangle continental event.
Bronze medal winner at Rio Olympics, Shakshi Malik put it succinctly: “Obviously everybody at the Games are gunning for medal. I can always hope for a medal and I will do my best to contribute to India’s medal tally.”
Talking to media persons at a send off ceremony she admitted “Yes the expectations add to the pressure. But that also adds to responsibility and commitment we have to have towards our country.
Bajrang Punia, the best bet among men in freestyle 65 kg class, described the evening “really motivating.”The silver medal winner at the Incheon Games said all the team members were training hard and assured of a good show at Jakarta.
“We don’t train for one opponent. We just can’t do that because you don’t know who your opponent would be,” he said. “But mentally you have to strong to tackle the situation,” he added.
Talking on the support the wrestlers have received, all the participants agreed that it has come as a morale booster. Vinesh Poghat, one of the most experienced with a bronze from the previous Games to show, was positive about her performance. But she pointed out, “All the 18 wrestlers are medal prospects. It’s about that one day and particular bout when you contest
Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Singh, opined, “Wrestling has always given us a good number of medals from all Games. We are expecting our grapplers to make us proud once again. I am sure they will have a better harvest this time at Jakarta than they did at Incheon Games, four years ago. All my WFI team of officials and I wish them good luck.”
Speaking on the occasion, Mr. Girish Wagh, President – Commercial Vehicle Business Unit, Tata Motors said, “Wrestling is not just a sport of strength, but also of courage. I feel proud of all the wrestlers who have achieved such great heights overcoming various challenges along the way. On behalf of Tata Motors family, I wish all the wrestlers ‘Gold’ Luck as they head to Jakarta.”
The Squads:
Men’s Freestyle: Sandeep Tomar (57 kg), Bajrang Punia (65 kg), Sushil Kumar (74 kg), Pawan Kumar (86 kg), Mausam Khatri (97 kg) and Sumit (125 kg).
Greco-Roman: Gyanender (60 kg), Manish (67 kg), Gurpreet Singh (77 kg), Harpreet Singh (87 kg), Hardeep Singh (97 kg) and Naveen (130 kg).
Women’s Freestyle: Vinesh Phogat (50 kg), Pinki (53kg), Pooja Dhanda (57kg), Sakshi Malik (62 kg), Divya Kakran (68kg) and Kiran (76kg).