World Wrestling C'ships: Can Sujeet Kalkal win his maiden World medal? - Preview

Indian wrestlers are set for the final major event of the year, the World Wrestling Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan, scheduled from October 24 to November 1.

India has sent a 30-member contingent, featuring 10 wrestlers each in Men's Greco-Roman, Men’s Freestyle, and Women’s Wrestling.

Asian Games champion Sujeet Kalkal will spearhead the Indian challenge and stands as the country’s strongest medal contender. He has been in outstanding form throughout the year, remaining undefeated in all his bouts so far.

His last loss came at the previous World Championships, where he was edged out 5-7 by Real Woods of the USA in the repechage and narrowly missed a medal.

Seeded second this time, Kalkal will look to settle unfinished business and win a gold, though he faces stiff competition from top seed Rahman Amouzadkhalili of Iran and Shamil Mamedov of Bulgaria.

Several leading Indian wrestlers, including Antim Panghal and Aman Sehrawat, have withdrawn from the event, which could affect the country’s medal prospects.

In their absence, young talents such as Neha Sangwan, Nishu, and Kajal Dhochak will emerge as key players to watch out for India in the women’s wrestling categories.

India has secured one medal in each of the last three editions of the championships and will be targeting a multi-medal haul this time.

Achieving that goal, however, will depend on a strong performance from what is a relatively inexperienced squad against some of the best wrestlers from the USA, Japan and Iran.

Indian Squad at the 2026 World Wrestling C'ships

Men's Freestyle: Rahul (57Kg), Nikhil (61Kg), Sujeet (65Kg), Vishal Kaliramana (70kg), Sagar Jaglan (74Kg), Saurabh Yadav (79Kg), Pushpender Dalal (86Kg), Sachin (92Kg), Vicky (97kg), Jaspooran Singh (125kg) 

Women's Wrestling: Neelam Sirohi (50Kg), Nishu (53Kg), Ahilya Shinde (55kg), Neha Sharma (57Kg), Manisha (59Kg), Neha Sangwan (62Kg), Rajnita (65Kg), Srishti (68kg), Tanu Sharma (72kg), Kajal Dhochak (76Kg)

Men's Greco-Roman: Lalit Sehrawat (55Kg), Harsh (60Kg), Sahil (63Kg), Sachin Sehrawat (67Kg), Karanjit Singh (72Kg), Lovepreet Singh (77Kg), Prince (82Kg), Sunil Kumar (87Kg), Nitesh Siwach (97Kg), Joginder Rathee (130Kg) 

Schedule (All Timings in IST)

24th October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: GR 55-60-82-77kg

07:30 PM: Semi-finals: GR 55-60-82-77kg

25th October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: GR 130-72-97kg

05:15 PM: Semi-finals: GR 130-72-97kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: GR 55-60-82-77kg

26th October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: GR 63-87-67kg

05:15 PM: Semi-finals: GR 63-87-67kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: GR 130-72-97kg

27th October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: WW 50-65-76-57kg

05:30 PM: Semi-finals: WW 50-65-76-57kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: GR 63-87-67kg

28th October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: WW 72-53-68-62kg

05:30 PM: Semi-finals: WW 72-53-68-62kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: WW 50-65-76-57kg

29th October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: WW 55-59kg & FS 65-97kg

05:30 PM: Semi-finals: WW 55-59kg & FS 65-97kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: WW 72-53-68-62kg

30th October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: FS 61-125-70-86kg

05:30 PM: Semi-finals: FS 61-125-70-86kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: WW 55-59kg & FS 65-97kg

31st October

11:00 AM: Preliminary Round: FS 79-57-92-74kg

05:30 PM: Semi-finals: FS 79-57-92-74kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: FS 61-125-70-86kg

1st November

05:30 PM: Repechages: FS 79-57-92-74kg

06:30 PM: Medal Bouts: FS 79-57-92-74kg

Where to Watch?

The 2026 World Wrestling Championships will be live-streamed on the official streaming platform of United World Wrestling, UWW+.