Rio Olympics 2016: Sushil Kumar out of Wrestling Federation of India's preparatory camp

Out of Sonepat camp, out of Rio?

Wrestler Sushil Kumar’s cause to represent India just took another unfavourable turn as his name has not been featured in Wrestling Federation of India(WFI)’s roster for the preparatory camp for this year’s Olympic Games. The program which starts off on Wednesday in Haryana’s Sonepat has taken into inclusion only those wrestlers who earned the quota berths for India at Rio.

In the 74kg Men’s Freestyle category, since it was Narsingh Yadav who earned the quota for the country at the World Wrestling Championship in Las Vegas last September, Sushil Kumar who missed the tournament with a shoulder injury has not found a mention in WFI’s current list.

Previously scheduled to begin on Monday, the Sonepat camp will now be conducted Wednesday onwards. All eight of the quota-earners for Indian wrestling will be present there for their training purposes, besides the wrestlers they will practice with. Their sparring partners, however, were chosen according to their preferences only, WFI having no say in their decisions.

Although Sushil hasn’t been included in WFI’s main list, a spokesperson from the federation has expressed their approval of him coming to train at the preparatory camp once it starts, if he wishes to. Despite the conflicting situation rolling on for weeks now, there hasn’t been any concrete word on the issue by any governing body, which has compelled Sushil to remain insistent in his earnest plea towards all Indians to present him with a fair trial to pick the best candidate for the Olympics.

Now with the Rio preparatory camp starting this week, Sushil’s chances appear all the more bleak while every other wrestler look well underway to hit their best shape ahead of the Games in the summer. Having prepared for the Olympics rigorously for over a year, whether the 32-year-old Sushil shows up at Sonepat to train alongside India’s Olympic-bound wrestlers and whether his request for a groundbreaking trial to be a decider is granted, still remain to be seen.