It was the last medal won by India at Paris 2024, not the least. It was not a mere sixth of the country’s total haul from this edition of the Olympics. It was a massive reassurance that all is not over as far as Indian wrestling is concerned. For a sport grappling with problems on and off the mat for the last year andahalf, it was a silver lining in the form of bronze.
Aman Sehrawat’s podium finish was significant from a personal point of view as well. For someone of a humble background from Haryana who lost his parents even before turning a teenager, it was a massive testament of courage and belief in own abilities. That he became the youngest Indian to win an individual Olympic medal at 21-plus was no mean feat either.
From a slightly broader perspective, it was another feather in the cap for the Chhatrasal Stadium as well. This nurturing ground of wrestlers in Delhi has produced several Olympic medallists and also been caught in controversies because of the involvement of its wards in unlawful activities. Its most famous product is in jail. But still, it continues to churn out wrestlers of international quality.
The real significance of Aman’s achievement is a total of all these things and more. Wrestling has been India’s most productive Olympic discipline in terms of individual events. Not just KD Jadhav and his milestone bronze in 1952. This is the only discipline delivering at least one medal in every edition of the Olympic since 2008. There was genuine fear that this streak would be snapped in Paris.
Wrestling had also been providing the Indian Olympic dream the most timely fillips. In 2012 in London, with two days of competitions remaining, India’s tally stood at four. From three in 2008, it was better, but only numerically. Yogeshwar Dutt then claimed bronze on the penultimate day, followed by Sushil Kumar’s silver, which took India’s medal count to six.
In other news:
🚨The Vinesh Phogat case has been extended to 16 August at 6 pm Paris time.
Every minor detail is being checked into as CAS has not jumped to a conclusion. Are we heading towards a positive verdict in favour of India?@RohanDC98 & @TrishaGhosal from Paris@AgeasFederal… pic.twitter.com/YFfIYq2CCt
— RevSportz Global (@RevSportzGlobal) August 14, 2024
In 2016, the Indians were consistently drawing blanks, until Sakshi Malik ended the drought by snatching bronze. In India’s best-ever Olympic outing in 2021, out of the seven medals, wrestling was the only discipline which fetched two— Ravi Dahiya’s silver and bronze for Bajrang Punia. It would have been disheartening had the wrestlers returned with nothing in 2024, especially after the Vinesh Phogat episode. Aman spared India and Indian wrestling that blemish.
That is why this bronze is as good as it gets. Itpales into insignificance compared to the colours of the other medals, but the significance of it makes it much more valuable than it actually is. This bronze will inspire kids to go to the akhadas and wrestle in the mud. After the controversies of last year, a barren outing in wrestling would have been a massive dampener. Aman made sure that this sport remained in the headlines for the right reasons.
He is apparently a reticent person, who hardly even smiles. Going by the video clippings featuring him from Paris, this assumption appears to be valid. He barely mumbles a few words. But then, his actions are louder and clearer. He remained unassuming after securing the medal, perhaps oblivious of the gravitas of his feat. But, don’t forget, he liberated Indians wrestling from the thoughts of uncertainty and emptiness. This bronze means much more than its materialistic value.
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