Bajrang Punia became the first Indian to win four medals at the World Wrestling Championships on September 18, taking bronze in the current edition. In one of the bronze medal bouts, Bajrang, who won bronze in Tokyo last year, edged out Sebastian C Rivera of Puerto Rico 11-9 on points.
Bajrang, who lost in the quarterfinals to John Michael Diakomihalis of the United States, advanced to the bronze medal match via the repechage round, where he defeated Vazgen Tevanyan of Armenia 7-6 by points.
Become 4-time world champion
It is Bajrang’s third bronze medal at the World Championships. The renowned Indian wrestler previously won bronze in 2013, silver in 2018, and bronze in 2019. India fielded a 30-member team for the ongoing World Championships but performed poorly, winning only two medals. Ravi Kumar Dahiya, a silver medalist at the Tokyo Olympics, had crashed out early and failed to finish on the podium.
Besides Bajrang, Vinesh Phogat won her second World Championship bronze medal in the women’s 53kg category. Vinesh had defeated Emma Malmgren of Sweden 8-0 to claim the bronze here.
