This is the first time that women wrestlers have outnumbered men in the Indian team for the Olympics.
Vinesh Phogat (50 kg): The Phogat sister is back in form. She is undeniably one of the best Indian wrestlers. She has a successful career: three Commonwealth Games gold medals, two World Championship bronze medals and one Asian Games gold medal.
At the Tokyo Olympics, Phogat was in exceptional form and remained undefeated throughout the year and won gold at the 2021 Asian Championships.
Antim Panghal (53 kg): A teenage wrestling sensation from Haryana, Panghal has made his mark on the international scene, with a bronze medal at the World Championships and the Asian Games.
The eldest of the Panghal siblings, Sarita Panghal, was a national level kabaddi player and she introduced Antim Panghal to wrestling at the age of 10.
Anshu Malik (57 kg): She is only 21 and already wears a feathered hat: a silver medal at the World Championships and another at the Commonwealth Games.
In 2021, Anshu created history by defeating Solomiia Vynnyk of Ukraine to reach the final of the women’s 57kg category at the World Wrestling Championships in Oslo, Norway. She thus became the first Indian woman to reach the final of the World Wrestling Championships, surpassing illustrious names like Geeta Phogat and Vinesh Phogat.
Nisha Dahiya (68 kg): India’s most promising young wrestler, with a list of records and some notable medals, has won the most in the 65kg category at the Asian Championships. She is the fastest Indian wrestler to win a gold medal at the World Championship.
She also holds a gold medal at the 2019 Commonwealth Championships, a silver medal at the 2020 Asian Championships and a bronze medal at the 2020 World Championships.
Reetika Hooda (76 kg): She wrestles in the freestyle wrestling category and won a bronze medal in the women’s 72 kg event at the 2023 Ibrahim Moustafa Wrestling Ranking Series in Egypt. She also won a bronze medal at the 2023 Asian Wrestling Championships.