Asian Wrestling: Lalit in 55kg Gold as Aman and Sunil Contest Bronze

India’s wrestling contingent had a mixed opening day at the Asian Wrestling Championships in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, as Lalit stormed into the men’s 55kg Greco-Roman gold-medal match , while Aman (77kg) and former champion Sunil Kumar (87kg) will vie for bronze on Tuesday.

Lalit , the U-23 Asian Championships bronze medallist , dominated China’s Huoying Shi 11-3 in the semifinals. He will face Ikhtiyor Botirov of Uzbekistan , the 2025 Asian Championships bronze medallist, who had defeated Ulan Uulu 5-3 in the second semifinal. Lalit had recently won bronze at the Muhamet Malo Wrestling meet , signalling strong form ahead of the gold-medal bout.

In the 77kg semifinals, Aman was defeated 3-13 by Iran’s Ali Oskou , despite a resilient quarterfinal performance where he reversed a 1-4 deficit to beat China’s Halishan Bahejiang 6-4. Aman will now meet Yeonghun Noh of South Korea in the bronze-medal match.

2020 Asian champion Sunil Kumar lost his 87kg semifinal 0-8 to Iran’s Gholamreza Farokhisenjani , ruling out gold but keeping alive hopes for his fourth continental medal at the bronze stage. In the 65kg category, Sunny Kumar was eliminated in the qualification round by Kazakhstan’s Saifulla Kurman .

In the 130kg category, Joginder Rathee fell in the quarterfinals to South Korea’s Minseok Kim , who then lost his semifinal, ending the possibility of a repechage for the Indian.

On Tuesday, five more Indian wrestlers Sahin (60kg), Sachin Sahrawat (67kg), Anil (72kg), Prince (82kg), and Nitesh (87kg) will be in action in the Greco-Roman category, aiming to add to India’s medal tally.

India’s campaign thus began on a mixed note , with Lalit providing a bright spot , while Aman and Sunil will look to secure podium finishes in the coming day.