Young wrestlers a distressed lot, say coaches

The younger lot is seeing its idols dragged through the mud, says Ajay Malik, who has trained top grapplers, including Sakshi Malik; another coach says fewer female wrestlers are joining his camp

Security personnel detain wrestler Sakshi Malik. | Photo Credit: File Photo

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The ongoing unrest in the field of wrestling is causing distress among young female grapplers in Haryana, several coaches in Haryana told The Hindu. One coach, training female wrestlers for the past eight years, reported a significant reduction in new trainees at his camp.

Haryana has dominated the world of women’s wrestling over the past many years. Since 2002, women wrestlers from Haryana have won 26 medals, including eight golds, across a dozen international events: three Olympics, four Asian Games, and five Commonwealth Games.

Some of India’s top wrestlers, including Sakshi Malik, Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia, all of whom are from Haryana, have led an over-a-month-long protest against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and BJP MP Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, accusing him of sexually harassing some women wrestlers.

Ajay Malik, a coach at Kuldeep Malik Training Academy, who has trained some of India’s top wrestlers, including Ms. Malik, said, “When the young wrestlers who aspire to become the next Phogats and Maliks see their idols being dragged through the mud, what effect do you think it has on them?”

A wrestling coach in Sonepat, who has been training female wrestlers for the past eight years, said only two wrestlers have joined his training camp this year.

“On average, I take between eight to ten girls in my training camp every year. However, only two girls have been admitted over the past five months.

The government’s apathy towards our female wrestlers is pushing away new girls from the akhara (rural gymnasium),” said the coach, who did not wish to be named. He is currently training a batch of over 30 women wrestlers.

Another coach in Sonepat, Sanjeet Chhikara, who coaches batches of three to four female wrestlers at Khajan Singh Akhada, said, “For young female wrestlers, who fight gender biases all their life to reach the akhara, the thought that perpetrators of sexual offences can roam freely, without being held accountable, is terrifying.”

“While women wrestlers continue to train here without missing a day, they look visibly demotivated,” he added.