Asian Wrestling Championships 2023: Schedule, Telecast, Indian squad, and more
The five-day event is scheduled to take place in Astana, Kazakhstan.
The Asian Wrestling Championships 2023 is scheduled to be held from April 9 to April 14, 2023, at the Zhaksylyk Ushkempirov Martial Arts Palace in Astana, Kazakhstan. This will be the 36th edition of the event that will feature competitions in Men’s Freestyle, Greco-Roman, and Women’s wrestling categories.
Earlier, the championship were slated to be held in New Delhi, India, but was then moved to Kazakhstan. The wrestlers from India had protested against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh with charges of sexual misconduct, harassment, and mental torture. As a result, there was a pending inquiry going against him that led to the shifting of the tournament from India to Kazakhstan.
With the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023, the Olympic qualifying process for Paris will commence formally. Although the championships will not be providing direct berths to the wrestlers, the participating nations can send the same number of wrestlers to the Worlds that are representing the nation at the continental meet.
Since China, India, host Kazakhstan, and Japan are the four countries that have sent 30 entrants to this competition, they can also send 30 wrestlers to the World Championships. Iran, on the other hand, has sent a full squad (20) in the men’s freestyle and Greco-Roman categories. Hence, this is a significant event ahead of the Paris Olympics 2024.
India at the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023
Top Indian Wrestlers like Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat, and Sakshi Malik have opted out of the championships and will not be participating in the event. Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Ravi Kumar Dahiya is another major missing owing to an injury. In the absence of these wrestlers, the Indian contingent will be led by the likes of Deepak Punia, Aman Sehrawat, Anshu Malik, Sarita Mor, and Antim Panghal.
The Commonwealth Games (CWG) 2022 gold medalist and World Championships 2019 silver medalist Deepak Punia will be India’s biggest medal prospect at the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023. To date, Deepak has claimed two silver and two bronze in the continental meeting but has never won a gold. He will hope to add the gold medal to his overall list of accomplishments as he leads a new Indian side in the Asian Championships.
The U23 World champion and Zagreb Ranking Open bronze medalist Aman Sehrawat and U20 World Champion Antim Panghal will be looking to impress the wrestling world in the absence of their senior counterparts. While the two-time gold medalist at the Asian Championships Sarita Mor will be eyeing to claim her third gold with an impressive performance in yet another edition. Sarita also won a silver in 2017 and a bronze in 2022 in this meeting and is a 2021 World bronze medalist.
Who is participating from India in the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023?
The Indian squads for the three events at the Asian Wrestling Championships are as follows:
Men’s Freestyle - Aman Sehrawat (57kg), Pankaj (61kg), Anuj Kumar (65kg), Mulayam Yadav (70kg), Yash Tushir (74kg), Deepak (79kg), Jonty Kumar (86kg), Deepak Punia (92kg), Deepak Nehra (97kg), Anirudh Gulia (125kg)
Greco Roman - Rupin (55kg), Sumit (60kg), Neeraj Chhikara (63kg), Ashu Bazard (67kg), Vikas (72kg), Sajan Bhanwala (77kg), Rohit Dahiya (82kg), Sunil Kumar (87kg), Narender Cheema (97kg), Naveen Sevlia (130kg)
Women’s Wrestling - Neelam Sirohi (50kg), Antim Panghal (53kg), Sito (55kg) Anshu Malik (57kg), Sarita Mor (59kg), Sonam Malik (62kg), Manisha (65kg), Nisha Dahiya (68kg), Reetika Hooda (72kg), Priya Malik (76kg)
Where and how can we watch the live stream for the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023?
The Asian Wrestling Championships 2023 will be live-streamed on the official website of the United World Wrestling (UWW), the governing body for Wrestling sport in the world.
Where and how can we watch the broadcast for the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023?
Unfortunately, there will be no TV broadcast of the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023 in India.
Schedule for Asian Wrestling Championships 2023
Sunday, April 9
| 12.30 - 15.00 | Qualification rounds of Greco Roman: 55kg, 63kg, 77kg, 87kg, 130 kg |
| 14:30 - 15.30 | Semi-final and Repechage rounds of Greco Roman: 55kg, 63kg, 77kg, 87kg, 130kg |
| 18.00 - 21.00 | Finals of Greco Roman: 55kg, 63kg, 77kg, 87kg, 130kg |
Monday, April 10
| 12:30 -15:00 | Qualification rounds of Greco Roman: 60kg, 67kg, 72kg, 82kg, 97kg |
| 14:30 - 15:30 | Semi-final and Repechage rounds of Greco Roman: 60kg, 67kg, 72kg, 82kg, 97kg |
| 18:00 - 21:00 | Finals of Greco Roman: 60kg, 67kg, 72kg, 82kg, 97kg |
Tuesday, April 11
| 12:30 - 15:00 | Qualification rounds of Women's Wrestling: 50kg, 55kg, 59kg, 68kg, 76kg |
| 14:30 - 15:30 | Semi-final and Repechage rounds of Women's Wrestling: 50kg, 55kg, 59kg, 68kg, 76kg |
| 18:00 - 21:00 | Finals of Women's Wrestling: 50kg, 55kg, 59kg, 68kg, 76kg |
Wednesday, April 12
| 12:30 -15:00 | Qualification rounds of Women's Wrestling: 53kg, 57kg, 62kg, 65kg, 72kg |
| 14:30 - 15:30 | Semi-final and Repechage rounds of Women's Wrestling: 53kg, 57kg, 62kg, 65kg, 72kg |
| 18:00 - 21:00 | Finals of Women's Wrestling: 53kg, 57kg, 62kg, 65kg, 72kg |
Thursday, April 13
| 11:30 - 15:00 | Qualification rounds of Men's Freestyle: 57kg, 65kg, 70kg, 79kg, 97kg |
| 14:30 -15:30 | Semi-finals, Repechage rounds of Men's Freestyle: 57kg, 65kg, 70kg, 79kg, 97kg |
| 18:00 - 21:00 | Finals of Men's Freestyle: 57kg, 65kg, 70kg, 79kg, 97kg |
Friday, April 14
| 11:30 - 15:00 | Qualification rounds of Men's Freestyle: 61kg, 74kg, 86kg, 92kg, 125kg |
| 14:30 -15:30 | Semi-final, Repechage rounds of Men's Freestyle: 61kg, 74kg, 86kg, 92kg, 125kg |
| 18:00 - 21:00 | Finals of Men's Freestyle: 61kg, 74kg, 86kg, 92kg, 125kg |
Indian medalists at the Asian Wrestling Championships 2023
Greco-Roman
55KG: Rupin lost to Poya Soulat (IRI) 1-3 to settle for silver medal
63KG: Neeraj beats Jinseub Song (KOR) 5-2 to win bronze medal
72KG: Vikas beats Jian Tan (CHN) 8-0 to win bronze medal
87KG: Sunil Kumar beats Masato Sumi (JPN) 4-1 to win bronze medal
Women's Wrestling
53KG: Antim Panghal lost to Akari Fujinami (JPN) 0-10 to settle for silver medal
57KG: Anshu Malik beat (MGL) 10-0 to win bronze medal
62KG: Sonam beat Xiaojuan Luo (CHN) 5-1 to win bronze medal
65KG: Manisha beat Albina Kairgeldinova (KAZ) 8-0 to win bronze medal
68KG: Nisha lost to Ami Ishii (JPN) 0-10 to settle for silver medal
72KG: Reetika beats Svetlana Oknazarova (UZB) 5-1 to win bronze medal
76KG: Priya beat Mizuki Nagashima (JPN) 2-1 to win bronze medal
Men's Freestyle
57KG: Aman Sehrawat beats Almaz Smanbekov (KGZ) 9-4 to win the gold medal
79KG: Deepak Mirka beats Shuhrat Bozorov (TJK) 12-1 to win the bronze medal
125KG: Anirudh Kumar beats Sardorbek Kholmatov (KAZ) 12-2 to win the bronze medal
Abhiruchi is an Olympics journalist at Khel Now, specializing in athletics, swimming, field hockey, gymnastics, and wrestling. She holds a Bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Mass Communication from Jain University, Karnataka, and has three years of experience in sports writing and editing. She has interviewed both Indian and international athletes and is keen to connect with emerging talents as well as elite performers. Abhiruchi is passionate about researching and staying updated on the latest developments in the sports world.
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