India claim six wrestling medals in Nagoya as Sehrawat and Kalkal deliver first freestyle double since 1978
Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet Kalkal led India to six wrestling medals at the Asian Games in Nagoya, with Sehrawat sealing a men's freestyle gold on Saturday to complete a rare double after 48 years. Sehrawat beat North Korea's reigning world champion Chong Song Han 11-7 in the men's 57kg final, after Kalkal had won the 65kg title a day earlier.
India finished the wrestling competition with two golds, two silvers and two bronze medals, a turnaround from the 2023 Hangzhou Games where the contingent did not win a gold. The two men's freestyle champions marked the first time India had secured dual male freestyle golds at an Asian Games since 1978.
Sehrawat's 11-7 victory over Chong unfolded with the North Korean repeatedly locking his arms early and forcing an activity clock, which Sehrawat used to open the scoring before converting a takedown to lead 4-1. A left-leg attack and a throw put Sehrawat 6-1 ahead, but Chong, after receiving treatment on his left knee, produced three consecutive scoring moves to lead 7-6. Sehrawat responded with two takedowns to retake the lead; Chong's challenge of the final point was rejected, leaving the score 11-7 in Sehrawat's favour.
Sehrawat reached the final by beating Tajikistan's Aiaal Belolyubskii 14-8 in the semifinals, opening his campaign with a 20-9 technical superiority win over Japan's Yamato Ogawa and defeating Kazakhstan's Nurdanat Aitanov in the quarterfinals. The 23-year-old now adds an Asian Games gold to the Olympic bronze he won at Paris 2024.
Kalkal produced a comeback in the men's 65kg final after trailing Tajikistan's Abdulmazhid Kudiev 2-9, scoring eight unanswered points to win 10-9. Kudiev had used arm locks and a physical approach early, but Kalkal began using his speed to get behind Kudiev for takedowns and secured the 65kg title, described in the report as another major title in a year in which he has continued to establish himself in the category.
India's two silver medals were earned by Nitesh Siwach in men's Greco-Roman 97kg and Antim Panghal in women's 53kg. Siwach lost 4-0 to Japan's Yuri Nakazato in the final and became the first Indian to contest a standalone Greco-Roman gold-medal bout at the Asian Games; his silver was India's first Greco-Roman medal at the Games since 1962. Antim was beaten 1-9 by Japan's Mei Miyooka, the 2024 World Champion, after attempting a right-leg attack that was countered and followed by a four-pointer.
Deepak Punia added a bronze with a 2-1 win over Mongolia's Gankhuyang Ganbataar in the men's 97kg bronze-medal bout, having opened with a 12-2 technical superiority victory over China's Junpeng Zhou and received a walkover from Hong Kong's Vincent Fung Wui Li. Punia, who moved up from 86kg for the Games, lost 8-9 to Uzbekistan's Sherzod Poyonov in the semifinals and already holds a World Championship silver from 2019 and five Asian Championships medals. Teammates Sagar Jaglan and Manisha Bhanwala fell short of medals: Jaglan lost the bronze-medal bout to Kazakhstan's Nurkozha Kaipanov by fall after progressing through repechage, and Manisha was halted 0-3 by Olympic champion Akari Fujinami in the women's 57kg quarterfinals, ending her chance for a repechage route when Fujinami failed to reach the final.
By the time Manisha's campaign ended, India had already secured a landmark wrestling performance at the Games: Aman Sehrawat and Sujeet Kalkal brought home two men's freestyle golds for India, the first occurrence at an Asian Games since 1978.
