Wrestling
Delhi's Chhatrasal stadium for wrestling gets its third Olympics medal
The Chhatrasal conveyor belt has churned out another medal with Ravi Dahiya continuing the Olympic tradition
Ravi Kumar Dahiya (Source: Twitter)
Sushil Kumar, Yogeshwar Dutt and Ravi Dahiya have a lot in common. Apart from being Olympic medallists and ace wrestlers, they have all been trained and hardened in the sport from Delhi's very own Chhatrasal Stadium. August 5th will mark the day Haryana and Chhatrasal Stadium saw another wrestler win an Olympic medal. He has the world at his feet and we must give credit where its due.
What is really special about Chhatrasal is that it has been consistently producing Olympic level wrestlers for over 2 decades. Never mind the medal count, the service to the nation is unparallel to any other wrestling training stadium or arena. Yogeshwar Dutt and Sushil Kumar both had a boost in their careers they day they joined Chhatrasal because the facilities they got were unparallel to anything else they had received before. This has also motivated Yogeshwar to start his own academy in Sonepat.
The stadium was built in 1980 and underwent renovations in 2010 as part of the Commowealth Games. Like many other stadiums, it has facilites for athletics, football, kabaddi, archery and basketball.
Incidentally, Ravi Dahiya also stayed in the same room the Yogeshwar Dutt stayed in during his days at Chhatrasal Stadium. It is fate no doubt, but budding wrestlers would hope that they get the same room in the future to maintain the luck and not break the jinx.
