On Thursday, Sakshi Malik, the 2016 Rio Olympic bronze medallist, announced her retirement from wrestling. Her decision came as a protest against the victory of Sanjay Singh, a loyalist of controversial figure Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, in the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) election for the top position. Sanjay, closely affiliated with the outgoing WFI chief Brij Bhushan, assumed the role of the new WFI president as his panel secured victory in 13 out of the 15 posts in the elections held on Thursday.
“We fought from our heart but if a man like Brij Bhushan, his business partner and a close aide is elected as the president of WFI, I quit wrestling,” a teary-eyed Sakshi said in a press conference following the election. She kept her shoes on the table following the announcement.
“We wanted a female president but that did not happen,” the 31-year-old, who is also a CWG gold medallist, added.
Born on September 3, 1992, Malik gained widespread recognition for her remarkable achievement of winning the bronze at the Rio Olympics seven years ago. In a memorable bout, she overcame reigning Asian champion Aisuluu Tynybekova of Kyrgyzstan with a scoreline of 8-5, despite initially trailing 0-5.
Her wrestling journey began at the age of 12 in Rohtak, and she experienced her first taste of international success in 2010 by securing a bronze medal at the Junior World Championships. Let’s delve into a comprehensive overview of her wrestling accomplishments:
Juniors
Asian Junior Championships, 2009 Manila – Silver medal in 59kg category
World Junior Championships, 2010 Budapest – Bronze medal in 59kg category
Asian Junior Championships, 2012 Almaty – Gold medal in 62kg category
Seniors
Olympics, 2016 Rio de Janeiro – Bronze medal in the 58 kg category.
Commonwealth Games, 2022 Birmingham – Gold medal in the 62 kg category.
Commonwealth Games, 2014 Glasgow – Silver medal in the 58 kg category.
Commonwealth Games, 2018 Gold Coast – Bronze medal in the 62 kg category.
Asian Championships, 2015 Doha – Bronze medal in the 60 kg category.
Asian Championships, 2017 New Delhi – Silver medal in the 60 kg category.
Asian Championships, 2018 Bishkek – Bronze medal in the 62 kg category.
Asian Championships, 2019 Xi’an – Bronze medal in the 62 kg category.
Commonwealth Championships, 2013 Johannesburg – Bronze medal in the 63 kg category.
Commonwealth Championships, 2017 Johannesburg – Gold medal in the 62 kg category.
