Wrestler Antim Panghal pulls out of Asian Championships trials due to back injury
Indian wrestler Antim Panghal has pulled out of the upcoming trials for the Asian Championships and the continental Olympics qualifiers after falling in her house and injuring her back. She will be out of action till the end of March.
Interestingly, Antim secured the Paris 2024 Olympics quota in the women’s 53 kg category after clinching a bronze medal at the World Championships last year. Importantly, she is Vinesh Phogat’s biggest challenger in this weight category.
After becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the U20 World Championships in 2022, Antim had an impressive calendar year in 2023, winning a medal on her Asian Games debut.
"She has suffered a muscle strain and is expected to recover in the upcoming 15-20 days," Antim's coach Vikas Bhardwaj told The Bridge.
"The doctor has advised her to rest, and that is why we have decided to skip the trials. She will recover from it and play in the trial when needed," Vikas went on to add.
As India bagged only one quota for the Paris 2024 Olympics, the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) is all set to conduct the trials to select the team for the Asian Championships and the continental qualifiers in New Delhi on March 10 and 11.
Furthermore, it remains to be seen if we can witness two-time World Championships bronze medallist Vinesh Phogat and Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist Bajrang Punia in the trials.
WFI gives Antim Panghal a reprieve
Antim has requested the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) to exempt her from the trials. The WFI has tentatively agreed to grant her request and has opted to conduct a separate trial for the wrestler to assess her fitness level. As per the plan, Antim will compete against the winner of the trials at a later date.
“Antim is injured and has requested the federation to postpone her trial as she has barely trained for a month now. We have agreed but she has been asked to appear for a trial. She will be asked to fight the winner in her category,” a WFI source told The Tribune newspaper.