Ravi Dahiya. Photo credit Kiren Rijiju @KirenRijiju|Twitter
Another wrestler Deepak Punia eyes Bronze
Tokyo: Wrestler Ravi Dahiya won the second Silver medal for India in the ongoing Olympic games today. In the men’s freestyle 57kg final although he lost to Zavur Uguev, this was not without putting up a valiant fight. The Russian Olympic Committee (ROC) wrestler, who is a two-time World Championships gold medallist, registered a 7-4 win against Dahiya.
Following today’s bout, Ravi has become only the second Indian wrestler, after Sushil Kumar, to win a Silver medal at the Olympic Games. Three more Indian wrestlers have won Bronze in the Olympics.
Dahiya, the reigning Asian Champion in the men’s 57kg freestyle category and a bronze medallist at the 2019 World championships, had defeated Kazakhstan’s Nurislam Sanayev in the semi finals to enter the finals.
Born in 1997, Dahiya hails from the village of Nahri in Sonipat district of Haryana. Since age 10, he had been training under Satpal Singh at the Chhatrasal Stadium in North Delhi. His father Rakesh Dahiya, a small farmer, used to travel daily from their village to the stadium to deliver fresh milk and fruits, which were part of his wrestling diet, for more than a decade.
While congratulating Dahiya for his feet, Prime Minister Narendra Modi called him a “remarkable” wrestler whose fighting spirit and tenacity were “outstanding”. Modi tweeted that India takes great pride in his accomplishments.
– global bihari bureau
