Indian Wrestlers to Train In U.S. For 12 Days Before World Championship

NEW DELHI: Determined to make the most of the time before the World Championship begins on September 7, the Indian wrestling squad will undergo a rigorous 12-day training, till September 6 in Las Vegas, USA.

The September 7-12 mega event will be held at the same venue, which will also be the first qualification tournament for the Rio Olympics.

The first batch of Indian contingent has reached the USA today, while the remaining 10-12 wrestlers will be leaving tonight after a delay in acquiring their visas.

Meanwhile, Bajrang, who had won a bronze medal at the 2013 World Wrestling Championship, will fly to Las Vegas on August 29th after receiving his Arjuna Award from the President of India. His friend and colleague, Yogeshwar Dutt will also accompany him.

However, starting today, the team will still have around 12 days to get acclimatised to the local conditions and work on sharpening their techniques ahead of the Championship.

"This tour will be an ideal opportunity for our wrestlers to get international exposure and get acclimatise to the local conditions in Las Vegas ahead of World Championship. Considering the importance of the Championship, we have scheduled this training with the aim to prepare our wrestlers in a better way and win more and more Olympic quotas.

"I am sure this tour will be an added advantage for our wrestlers who have been working hard in training camps since November last year," said Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, President Wrestling Federation of India.

Squad:

Men Freestyle: Amit Kumar (57kg), Bajrang Singh (61kg), Yogeshwar Dutt (65kg), Arun (70kg), Narsingh Yadav (74kg), Naresh Kumar (86kg), Mausam Khatri (97kg), Sumit (125kg).

Support Staff: Kuldeep Singh (coach), Jagmal Singh (coach), Sunil Rajguru (masseur), Manjul Nautiyal (masseur).

Female Wrestling: Vinesh (48kg), Babita (53kg), Lalita (55kg), Geeta Phogat (58kg), Sarita (60kg), Anita (63kg), Navjot (69kg), Nikki (75kg).

Support Staff: A N Yadav (coach), Krtishna Arya (coach), Shweta Bala (masseur), Dhirendra Pratap (physio).

Men Greco-Roman: Ravinder Singh (59kg), Deepak (66kg), M Rafique (71kg), Gurpreet Singh (75kg), Harpreet Singh (80kg), Manoj Kumar (85kg), Hardeep (98kg), Naveen (130kg).

Support Staff: Kuldeep Singh (coach), Mahabir Prasad (coach), Chandervijay Singh (coach), Brajesh (physio), Krishan Kumar (masseur).

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