Wrestling
Antim Panghal to compete in final bout for 53kg trial of Asian Championships
The WFI has exempted Antim Panghal from selection trials for the Asian Championships and said the winner of the trials will have to play her in one final bout when she recovers from an injury.
Antim Panghal has been currently nursing an injury. (Photo credit: Pritish Raj/TheBridge)
India's only Paris Olympics quota place winner Antim Panghal will now only compete in one final bout at the upcoming selection trials for the Asian Championships as the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) gave her an exemption on Tuesday.
The decision came after Antim pulled out from the trials because of a muscle strain, as reported by The Bridge on March 3. The trials will be held at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in Delhi on March 10 and 11.
"The winner of the initial trials at the 53kg weight category will fight in a one-on-one battle with Paris quota winner Antim, who is reportedly nursing an injury, in the trial which will be held in March end," a circular issued by the WFI stated.
The winners of the trials in Olympic weight categories will represent the country in both the Asian Championships and the Asian Olympic Games qualifiers to be held in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.
However, Antim doesn't need to compete in the Olympic qualifiers since she has already secured the Paris Olympics quota place in the women's 53 kg category by earning a bronze medal at the World Championships last year.
On the other hand, the WFI, still ‘suspended’ by the union sports ministry, will hold its special general meeting (SGM) in Noida on March 29. The world body of wrestling, United World Wrestling, lifted its suspension from WFI last month. The ministry, however, did not challenge that even though the IOA-appointed ad-hoc committee is functioning parallelly as the government-appointed patron of WFI.
