Finance
Chirag Chikkara, 18, won the gold medal in the men’s freestyle 57kg category on the last day of the U23 World Wrestling Championships in Tirana, Albania, giving India its only gold medal in the event.
His victory over Kyrgyzstan’s Abdymalik Karachov, which concluded in a close 4-3 decision, made him only the second Indian men’s wrestler and third Indian overall to win the prestigious championship. With this triumph, India completed their campaign with an outstanding total of nine medals.
After defeating Japan’s Gatuko Ozawa 6-1 in the first round, he dominated his quarterfinal match against Russia’s Iunus Iavbatirov, winning 12-2. In the semifinals, Chirag put on a great performance against Kazakhstan’s Allan Oralbek to clinch his place in the final, where he edged out Karachov.
Chirag follows in the footsteps of Aman Sehrawat, who won India’s first U23 wrestling gold last year in the 57kg division, and Reetika Hooda, who won gold in the women’s 76kg category.
Sujeet Kalkal won bronze in the men’s freestyle 70kg division with a convincing 13-4 victory over Tajikistan’s Mustafo Akhmedov. Vicky Chahar also upset Ukraine’s former U20 World Championships silver champion Ivan Prymachenko in the 97kg category, winning 7-2 to claim another bronze medal.
On Saturday, Abhishek Dhaka’s bronze medal in the 61kg category began off India’s medal count, setting a strong tone for the men’s freestyle wrestling squad, which eventually won four medals and finished fourth in their category behind Iran, Japan, and Azerbaijan.
India’s women’s freestyle team placed fifth, with Anjli winning silver in the 59kg division and three bronze medals for her colleagues. Vishwajit Ramchandra More, India’s lone Greco-Roman medalist, won bronze in the 55kg category. Despite their best efforts, the Greco-Roman team placed 12th overall.
India finished the competition with nine medals: one gold, one silver, and seven bronze.
Source:IANS
