The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) has initiated disciplinary action, serving a show-cause notice to Paris Olympics bronze medalist Aman Sehrawat. This comes after Sehrawat was found to be significantly overweight during the recent World Wrestling Championships in Zagreb, rendering him ineligible to compete.
In a move emphasizing strict adherence to athletic standards, the WFI has also decided to eliminate the traditional two-kilogram weight relaxation previously granted to wrestlers during selection trials. This updated policy will be effective immediately, starting with the under-23 trials scheduled for October 4 and 5 in Lucknow and Delhi, which are crucial for selecting participants for the World under-23 championships in Novi Sad, Serbia, from October 20 to 26.
WFI President Sanjay Singh confirmed the notice, stating, “Aman and his support staff who were with him in Zagreb have all been issued show-cause notices. They are required to submit their explanations by September 29. We need to thoroughly review their side of the story before making a final decision.”
Despite being a third seed and a strong contender for a medal, Aman was unable to participate in his men’s 57kg freestyle competition due to exceeding his weight class by 1.7kg.
Sanjay Singh expressed profound disappointment, highlighting the wasteful expenditure of significant government funds on international training camps when such negligence occurs. He further relayed the sentiment of Minister Mansukh Mandaviya, who believes that “unless we effectively address this issue, achieving Olympic medals will remain an uphill battle.”
This incident involving Aman is particularly concerning as it marks the third such occurrence for an Indian wrestler at an international event within the past year. Notable previous cases include Vinesh Phogat’s weight management issues at the Paris Olympics, which prevented her from competing in the women’s 50kg final and effectively cost India a medal, and Neha Sangwan (59kg), who was similarly barred from the World under-20 championships last month for failing to meet her designated weight limit.