India will reportedly have no representation in the first wrestling ranking series of the year. The national contingent, which includes 57kg defending champion and Paris Olympics medallist Aman Sehrawat, will apparently miss the Zagreb Open, which starts on February 4 in Croatia, owing to a lack of clearance from the sports ministry. (More Sports News)
Sehrawat and other Indian freestyle as well as Greco-Roman wrestlers will bear the brunt of this development, according to a Times of India report. The sports ministry's refusal to grant affiliation to the elected Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) body, despite recognition from United World Wrestling, is the reason for the lapse, the report states.
Sanjay Singh was elected as the WFI president more than a year back after prevailing over the government-backed candidate Anita Sheoran.
The national federation waited for the ministry's authorisation for the February 5-9 event in Croatia's capital, the report cites sources as saying, despite submitting entries to the organisers well in advance, as well as reminding the Sports Authority of India about the same on multiple occasions. Yet, the clearance was yet to materialise.
"The trip to Zagreb has been called off. There's no time remaining to process anything. The team's participation has been withdrawn since the federation hasn't received confirmation from the SAI. The wrestlers have been notified about this," the report quotes a WFI official as saying.
This is not the first time that Indian wrestlers will miss participating in crucial events. Earlier too, they had to forego two key invitational tournaments in Belarus and Egypt in November-December 2024 after the SAI refused to clear the teams, owing to the WFI's continued derecognition.
