Asian wrestling: Sumit wins silver, India finish with 10 medals

New Delhi, May 14

Advertisement

India finished their campaign at the Asian Wrestling Championship with a silver medal as Sumit Kumar went down to Yadollah Mohammadkazem Mohebi of Iran in the gold-medal bout of the 125kg category (freestyle) on the final day of the competition here today.

The Indian wrestlers finished with 10 medals, including a gold, five silver and four bronze, winning a medal more than they did in the last edition of the Championship in Bangkok. In the men’s freestyle category, Iran defended their title, while Japan and Uzbekistan finished second and third, respectively.

Kumar, making a comeback to the international circuit seven months after a back surgery, could not pose much threat to the formidable Iranian. He lost 2-6 and had to settle for a silver. Mohebi took the first point by pushing Kumar out of the zone. But the Indian took the lead seconds later when he earned two points with a takedown. Mohebi regained the lead towards the end of the round when he produced an excellent counterattack against an attempted attack on his legs by Kumar and bagged four points with a takedown, followed by a rollover.

With a comfortable 5-2 lead under his belt, the Iranian grappler used his superior technique to keep the Indian from scoring any more points in the second and final rounds. Mohebi scored one more point in the final minute when he caught hold of Kumar’s leg and brought him down.

“Yes, it was difficult to make a comeback after the surgery but I practiced hard and did not face any problem fighting here,” said the 24-year-old Indian.

The heavyweight grappler, who trains under India’s double Olympics medallist Sushil Kumar at the Chhatrasal Stadium, said: “I benefit a lot by training with Sushil. He has a great technique and I have learnt a lot under him despite the weight difference in our categories.” 

Apart from Kumar, the other Indians in the fray — Somveer Kadian (86kg), Vinod Omprakash (70kg) and Harphool (61kg) — on the final day failed to impress and crashed out before the medal rounds.