The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) which is currently run by the ad-hoc panel has announced the dates of U15 and U20 championships. The announcement comes after junior wrestlers protested at Jantar Mantar. The panel claimed to have acknowledged the problems and is working to resolve the same.
The U15 and U20 National Championships are slated to take place within 6 weeks. The championship will be held in Gwalior. The young wrestlers had protested for the absolution of the ad-hoc panel that has been commissioned by Indian Olympic Association (IOA).
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“The (ad-hoc) committee acknowledges the concerns raised by the young wrestlers (during the protest) and is committed to address the issues. The Committee is planning to organise the national championships for the U-15 and U-20 categories within the next six weeks at LNIPE, Gwalior,” Bhupender Singh Bajwa, chairman of the three-member panel said in a statement.
“The ad-hoc committee reaffirms its full commitment to the growth and development of wrestling in India, fostering a culture of excellence and perseverance. The young wrestlers are advised to continue training and practising for these events,” added the statement.
The sport of wrestling is currently in tatters in the country. After the year long protest against former chief Brij Bhushan Saran Singh, new WFI elections were held. But Brij Bhushan’s aid Sanjay Singh won the election. As a protest, Sakshi Malik quit the sport while Vinesh Phogat and Bajrang Punia returned their laurels to the Prime Minister of India.
No wrestling camps have been held in the country since 2023. With junior wrestlers losing their precious time, the panel’s decision comes as means that is necessary.
Earlier, Sanjay Singh’s WFI was suspended by the Sports Ministry for failing to abide to it’s very won constitutional laws on 27th December. The new WFI body decided to conduct the junior championship by the end of 2023 which failed to mandate the necessary rules needed to host the competition.
