Jr World Champ Antim eyes an encore at senior World Championships

Back in the country after claiming her second consecutive U-20 Wrestling World Championship gold in Amman, Jordan, last week, an elated Antim Panghal has little time to bask in its glory.

“To be the first Indian woman wrestler to win back-to-back golds at this event gives me immense happiness,” said the 19-year-old from Hisar, Haryana who topped the podium in the women’s 53kg category. 

“The expectations and pressure have multiplied, but the hunger to win more medals for the country has also increased. My focus now is solely on the World Championship trials,” added Antim in a virtual interaction on Thursday

The selection trials will be held in Patiala on August 25-26 for the World Championships scheduled to commence on September 16 in Serbia that will serve as the first qualifying event for the 2024 Paris Olympics. 

Though she sounded calm now, her ticket to the Asian Games, starting September 23 in Hangzhou, China, was anything but a smooth sailing. 

Recently, Antim’s petition in the High Court against the Asian Games trial exemption given to Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat was dismissed. Just when the setback threatened to derail her spirit, Vinesh pulling out of the quadrennial bash paved the way for the young grappler to make it to the Indian squad who had won the trials but was kept as a standby. 

For someone who calls Vinesh her idol, Antim avoided discussing about the stressful episode. 

“Vinesh is a very good wrestler. She has put in a lot of hard work to reach where she has. However, my focus will always be towards working even harder to achieve things more than her,” claimed Antim. 

Speaking about her training for the two big events in the coming weeks, she said: “I have won several medals in the junior category. The transition to the seniors will not be an easy one but I’m preparing well to make a mark there too. The desire is to win gold at the senior Worlds. 

“This will be my first Asian Games and I'm excited about it. Every opponent is going to be difficult to face. But my coaches and I have chalked out a plan to deliver my best,” said Antim. 

The toughest task for any wrestler, especially with important tournaments scheduled one after the other, is to maintain their body weight. 

When asked about this challenge, Antim said: “I stop drinking milk and curd a month before any event. Sacrificing food is tough but that’s what this sport demands.”

Amidst workload management and hectic training sessions, the constant media and public glare is something she is still getting used to, said Antim.

“More people recongnise me now. Life has drastically changed. But I like it.”