Why Sarita Mor cannot qualify for the Olympics?

The uncertainty surrounding the past year as cause various problems to athletes across India. There have been several major tournaments that have been cancelled, quota places for certain sports have been capped already and the lack of training has also affected several individuals. Wrestling however has been one sport which has seen an exponential rise in the number of individuals qualifying for certain weight categories. One individuals however faces a daunting task in the next few weeks regarding her qualification. Sarita Mor, despite being a two time gold medallist at the Asian Championships will seemingly not be qualifying for the Olympics this year.

She made a stellar comeback yesterday when she was losing 7-1 in the final to overcome her opponent and claim the gold with a run of nine consecutive points. One would think that this would be a good preparation for her in the Olympic run. However, the issue is much larger than was first imagined to be. The weight category that she currently competes in is 59kg. This has been her mainstay for the past few years both in international and national events.

One might contend that there is a chance of her lowering her category to 57kg which is an Olympic category. However, 19 year old Anshu Malik has deservedly taken the spot a few weeks back.

Incidentally, in the Matteo Pellicone event held in Rome earlier this year, she did compete in the 57kg category and won a silver medal. However, the constant shift of her weight category has resulted in her now being sandwiched in the 59 kg category with one spot already gone in the category below hers. Unless there is a drastic shift or an increase in her weight category in the next few weeks, she will not be able to qualify for the Olympics this year.