Manisha Bhanwala wins 59kg world title in Astana, first Indian woman to claim gold

Manisha Bhanwala rallied to beat USA’s Abigail Elizabeth Nette 8-6 in the 59kg final to win gold at the World Wrestling Championships in Astana on Friday, October 30, 2026, becoming the first Indian woman to take a World title.

The 29-year-old is the second Indian overall to win a Worlds crown after Sushil Kumar, who won the 66kg freestyle title in Moscow in 2010. Manisha had earlier won the Asian title at 62kg, then switched to 57kg last year and suffered a disappointing outing in that weight at the Asian Games in Japan before progressing at the Worlds. She defeated three opponents on Thursday to reach the final. After winning the 57kg National title last year she told The Hindu: “I competed in 62kg for four years and gave good performances. I feel I could not make it to the Olympics because of my height (five feet two inches) as I was not able to take proper positions.”

In the final, Manisha recovered from a 0-6 deficit to win 8-6 against Abigail Elizabeth Nette, the USA Pan-American champion and World No.10. The comeback produced the decisive margin in the non-Olympic 59kg category.

Indian women recorded their best-ever showing at the World Championships, with Neelam Sirohi winning silver in 50kg, Kajal Dhochak taking silver in 76kg and Tanu Sharma earning bronze in 72kg. The collective medal haul helped India finish fourth in the women’s section at the tournament.

In men’s freestyle action, Vicky, competing at 97kg, lost 10-0 to Iran’s Hassan Yazdani in a repechage round. Wrestlers Nikhil (61kg), Pushpender Dalal (86kg) and Jaspooran Singh (125kg) advanced into repechage rounds.

Manisha’s gold in Astana should boost her ambition to shine at the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.