Indian wrestler Ravi Kumar won the silver medal in men’s freestyle 57kg after losing to Russian Olympic Committee’s (ROC) Zavur Uguev in the final at the Tokyo Olympics on Thursday. The ROC wrestler won the bout 7-4 on points. Ravi Kumar, who had reached the final by beating Sanayev Nurislam of Kazakhstan in the semi-final, found Uguev, a two-time World Champion, too strong and too determined to win the gold. The Russian won early points and then defended strongly, without giving Ravi Kumar many chances. Ravi Kumar won India’s second silver medal in the Olympics after Sushil Kumar who won in 66kg freestyle in the London Olympics in 2012.
Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar on Thursday congratulated wrestler Ravi Kumar Dahiya for bagging silver. Khattar, who watched the match on television, announced a reward of Rs 4 crore for the wrestler along with a Class I government job, as per the state’s policy. The Chief Minister has also said that an indoor wrestling stadium will be built at Nahari village in Sonepat district, the native place of Ravi Kumar. Khattar also said that Dahiya has not only won the heart of Haryana, but the entire country is elated with his achievement. “I wish you achieve new heights of success,” the Chief Minister said.
On Wednesday, the 23-year-old, who made his Olympics debut, didn’t disappoint his family and millions of others who were praying for his victory. With just 50 seconds left on the clock and Sanayev showing signs of struggling with a knee injury – the Kazakh already had one on his head coming into the semis – Dahiya turned the tables scoring a two-point takedown and converted it to a pin – exposing both his opponent’s shoulders to the mat – to win the bout by fall and reach the Olympic finals.
As a triumphant Dahiya stood up on the mat at Makuhari Messe, a large-scale convention centre located in Chiba in the Greater Tokyo area where the wrestling event is being conducted during the Games, celebrations went berserk, not just in the dusty Nahri but all over India. It certainly called for a big celebration as Dahiya secured India’s fourth medal at the ongoing Games, joining weightlifter Mirabai Chanu (silver), shuttler P V Sindhu (bronze) and boxer Lovlina Borgohain (bronze).