World Olympic Qualifier: Last chance for wrestlers to grab Paris quota

Top Indian wrestlers like Aman Sehrawat and Deepak Punia will lead the 14-member Indian wrestling contingent at the World Olympic Qualifier in Istanbul, Turkiye, scheduled to start from May 9-12.

This is the final chance for all the wrestlers to qualify for the Paris Olympics.

India has already secured four wrestling quotas for the Paris Olympics and all of those have come in the women's wrestling category. Vinesh Phogat (50 Kg), Antim Panghal (53 kg), Anshu Malik (57 Kg), and Reetika (76 Kg) are the four quota-winner wrestlers of India.

Not a single male player has obtained a Paris quota so far, Aman Sehrawat (57 Kg), Sujeet (65 Kg), and Deepak Punia (86 Kg) will be the ones who have a good chance of grabbing some more wrestling quotas for India from world qualifiers.

Aman who is a former Asian champion has lost the first two opportunities to win a quota place at the World Championships and the Asian Olympic qualifier. He will enter the tournament as a second-seeded wrestler in men's 57 kg, hence receiving a bye in the first round.

Multiple-time European medalist, Georgi Vangelov of Bulgaria will be his potential opponent in the round of 16, if he wins that match it will be a much easier opponent for him in the quota place match in the semis.

Deepak and Sujeet had an unfortunate incident at the Asian Olympic Qualifier as they could not reach the venue on time because they were stuck at the Dubai Airport because of a flood situation but now they will get one final shot at the quota.

Deepak will face Zushen Lin of China in the first round while his quota place match in the semis will potentially be up against the first-seeded Turkish wrestler Osman Gocen meanwhile Sujeet is playing Umidjon Jalolov of Uzbekistan in the first round, if he wins the match, he has a very good draw ahead of him till semis.

In women's wrestling, only two players, Mansi (62 Kg) and Nisha (68 Kg) are taking part, they will be seeing their eyes to make a complete clean sweep for Indian women's wrestlers at the Paris Olympics.

Nisha got a bye in the first round whereas Mansi has a tough opponent in her round of 16 clash as she is up against the top-seeded wrestler, Veranika Ivanov.

Women's wrestling action will start on the 10th of May.

The Qualifier will start with the Greco-Roman category on the first day of the competition. India's best bet in Greco-Roman will be Sumit in the 60 Kg category while the former Asian Champion Sunil Kumar (87 Kg) will also give his all at this final shot.

Format

This event is offering three quotas in each of the eighteen weight categories across disciplines. The two winners of the semi-finals of each category will directly win the ticket to the Paris Olympics and their competition will be over as there is no final in the event.

The two losers of the semi-finals will take part in the bronze medal match against the players coming in from the repechage round. Then, the two bronze medalists will take on each other for the third-place match and the final ticket for the Paris Olympics.

Indian Squad

Men's Freestyle: - Aman Sehrawat (57 Kg), Sujeet Kalkal (65 Kg), Jaideep (74 Kg), Deepak Punia (86 Kg), Deepak (97 Kg ), Sumit (125 Kg)

Women's Freestyle:- Mansi (62 Kg), Nisha Dahiya (68 Kg)

Men's Greco Roman:- Sumit (60 Kg), Ashu (67 Kg), Vikas (77 Kg), Sunil Kumar (87 Kg), Nitesh (97 Kg), Naveen (130 Kg)

Schedule

9th May:- Men's Greco Roman Wrestling ( Prelims + Semis)

10th May:- Women's Freestyle Wrestling ( Prelims + Semis), Greco Roman (Third place matches)

11th April:- Men's Freestyle Wrestling ( Prelims + Semis), Women's Freestyle (Third place matches)

12th April: - Men's Freestyle Wrestling ((Third place matches))

Details

Time:- Morning session (12:30 PM IST), Quota matches (8:30 PM IST)

Venue:- Başakşehir Youth and Sports Facilities

Place:- Başakşehir, Istanbul

Quota Available:- Three in each category

Live Streaming

The Live streaming of the World Olympics Qualifier in Istanbul, Turkiye, will be available on the official website of United World Wrestling (UWW). The fans will have to take a subscription to their platform UWW+ to watch the event.