Inspire Institute of Sport signs High Performance partnership with Wrestling Federation of India

The Inspire Institute of Sport (IIS) and the Wrestling Federation of India on Friday announced the signing of an agreement that would see the institute become a High-Performance Partner to the WFI for a period of three years. Under the terms of the agreement, IIS will work together with the national sports federation to provide scholarships to wrestlers across age groups and also support the hosting of regular national wrestling championships for all categories.

IIS will also provide access to its state-of-the-art campus in Bellary, Karnataka ad sports science expertise to the WFI. The agreement was formally signed here on Friday in the presence of Parth Jindal, Founder of the Inspire Institute of Sport and Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, President of WFI.

Speaking on the occasion, Parth Jindal said, "The sport of wrestling has a long tradition and history in India and we are thrilled to partner with the WFI to help the sport achieve greater heights in the coming years. "Having won medals at each edition of the Olympics since 2008, alongside regular world championship medals at cadet, junior and senior levels, wrestling is amongst India's most successful Olympic sports. "I am confident that through this partnership, we will be able to positively impact the sport and Team India's performances in the run up to Paris 2024."

The institute has a similar arrangement with the Boxing Federation of India. Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh said, "I have been impressed by the Inspire Institute's efforts and initiatives to develop wrestling infrastructure in Bellary and look forward to welcoming Parth and his team as WFI partners as we take the next steps in the development of wrestling in the country." The IIS wrestling programme, led by head coaches Yandro Quintana of Cuba and Amir Tavakolian of Iran, has groomed over 90 wrestlers since 2017, who have returned with over 120 medals at the national, continental and international levels.

Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik, along with other prominent wresters such as Pooja Dhanda, Rahul Aware, Seema Bisla and upcoming youngsters including Gourav Baliyan and U-15 world champion Komal have all been trained and groomed at the institute.