Wrestlers grapple with admin turmoil as Pune nationals begin

One couldn’t tell there was anything unofficial about this, though.

Diyas were lit in its scheduled opening ceremony on Monday morning, watched on by a bunch of dignitaries seated on a huge dais. Among them was Sanjay Singh, president of the suspended WFI who took over from former chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.

He addressed the gathering, comprising wrestlers, coaches and referees, with a speech that stated, “khushti rukni nahi chahiye, chahe kuch bhi ho (wrestling should not stop, come what may)”.

“I will not let the future of young wrestlers get destroyed. I am here standing beside you, be rest assured,” he added.

Whether that sense of surety is being felt by the country’s wrestlers is another matter. For, after the pause of last year due to protests by the top wrestlers over Brij Bhushan’s alleged sexual harassment, the sport’s restart has been marred by two different senior nationals being held by separate bodies. In an Olympic year no less.

The first, in Pune, by the suspended WFI that is refusing to budge and, on the contrary, flaunting its show of strength. The second, in Jaipur from February 2-5, by the Indian Olympic Association’s ad hoc panel from where, the ministry has stated, grapplers for the national camp will get entry.

The Pune nationals, without the presence of the country’s top names, had about 190 wrestlers participating in the freestyle events across weight categories on Monday (Greco-Roman and women’s events will be held on Tuesday and Wednesday). Twenty-four state associations have sent entries while government units, Railways and Services, have stayed away.

There’s a catch there too. Some faction-riddled state associations, like Haryana and Maharashtra, held two separate trials to pick wrestlers for the two nationals. Some have fielded second-string teams on paper for Pune, while wrestlers of some associations, like Karnataka, will feature in both. Some associations are still adopting a wait-and-watch policy.

Dhiraj Kumar Choubey, coach of the Jharkhand contingent which has 34 wrestlers competing in Pune, said they haven’t decided whether to go for the Jaipur nationals as well. “We are waiting for the directives, which should come in a day or two. If we have to go, we have no option but to go,” he said.

For the wrestlers, that would mean making a dash to Jaipur and getting back to shape, and optimal weight, to compete within four days.

“Anyone who has been associated with the sport knows how difficult that is,” another coach, who is likely to have to take his wrestlers to both events, said, requesting not to be named.

The sense of apprehension of being clubbed with either side of this wrestling split is palpable. A couple of wrestlers will proudly state their identity as being “netaji’s aadmi (netaji’s men)” and will thus scoff at being asked about the Jaipur nationals. Most, however, will just smile, preferring silence.

A wrestler from Chandigarh, among the 10 from the state in Pune, said he had been left confused about which of the two nationals to participate in. “I came here only because the entire team from my state is here,” he said, requesting not to be named.

Prithviraj Khadke, a two-time junior national medal-winning wrestler from Maharashtra, was clear about his choice.

“We had two separate trials. Those who took part for this are here and the others will go there,” the 97kg Greco-Roman wrestler said.

“This (pointing at the dais) body is WFI, and it has come after the elections were held. In a month or two, things will get clear and then hopefully the results of this nationals will be considered official.”

Amid this wait-and-watch and confusion, almost everyone appeared to be relieved about the return of wrestling action in the country.

National events in the sport had come to a standstill over the last one year after the protests first began in January, leading to the federation’s suspension, re-election followed by another suspension. That the senior nationals — two of them notwithstanding — are back again comes as a drop of positivity in the sea of negatives.

“Wrestlers, especially the juniors who lost out on a year, have suffered a lot. Many of them wondered if they should stop wrestling and pick up something else,” Choubey, who has a couple of young women wrestlers from Jharkhand making their senior debut here, said.

“It is good that the senior nationals have finally happened. But now they should look at holding age-group nationals as soon as possible.”

WFI TALKS WITH MINISTRY

Sanjay Singh, meanwhile, maintained that talks are on with the sports ministry about getting WFI’s suspension lifted, and that he hoped for an outcome in the “next 10-15 days”.

“I have told the government that this is an Olympic year, these things should end soon and we should be given time to work towards that,” he said.

He also said that wrestlers who compete in Jaipur will not be ignored. “Whoever does well there, we will get them on board too,” he said.

The suspended WFI chief admitted that safety of women wrestlers was a concern but said corrective measures will be taken.

“Yes, safety (of women wrestlers) was a concern. It is why we made a committee for that, which is headed by a woman chairperson,” he said.

He also requested Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik, the face of the protests, to cooperate with the newly elected body.

“I am inviting them to come and work with us and help the wrestlers. They had issues with the old federation. But this a new body, so I’m requesting them to not harm wrestling,” he said.