Bajrang Punia

Bajrang Punia (born 26 February 1994) is an Indian freestyle wrestler, who competes in the 65-kg weight category. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, Punia won a bronze medal by defeating Kazakhstan's Daulet Niyazbekov with a 8–0 margin.[2] Punia is the only Indian wrestler to win 4 medals at the World Wrestling Championships.[3] He is one of the leaders of the ongoing 2023 Indian wrestlers' protest against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.[4]

Bajrang Punia
President Pranab Mukherjee presenting the Arjuna Award to Punia in 2015
Personal information
NationalityIndian
Born (1994-02-26) 26 February 1994
Khudan, Jhajjar, Haryana, India
Occupationwrestler
Height1.66 m (5 ft 5 in)
Weight65 kg (143 lb)
Spouse(s)Sangeeta Phogat (m. 2020)
Sport
CountryIndia
SportWrestling
Event(s)Freestyle
Coached bySujeet Maan
Medal record
Men's Freestyle Wrestling
Representing  India
Event 1st 2nd 3rd
Olympic Games — — 1
World Championships — 1 3
Asian Games 1 1 —
Commonwealth Games 2 1 —
World U23 Wrestling Championships — 1 —
Asian Championships 2 4 2
Commonwealth Championships 2 — —
Total 7 8 6
Olympic Games
Bronze medal – third place2020 Tokyo65 kg
World Championships
Silver medal – second place2018 Budapest65 kg
Bronze medal – third place2013 Budapest60 kg
Bronze medal – third place2019 Nur-Sultan65 kg
Bronze medal – third place2022 Belgrade65 kg
Asian Games
Gold medal – first place2018 Jakarta65 kg
Silver medal – second place2014 Incheon61 kg
Commonwealth Games
Gold medal – first place 2018 Gold Coast 65 kg
Gold medal – first place 2022 Birmingham 65 kg
Silver medal – second place 2014 Glasgow 61 kg
Asian Championships
Gold medal – first place2017 New Delhi65 kg
Gold medal – first place2019 Xi'an65 kg
Silver medal – second place2014 Astana61 kg
Silver medal – second place2020 New Delhi65 kg
Silver medal – second place2021 Almaty65 kg
Silver medal – second place 2022 Ulanbator 65 kg
Bronze medal – third place2013 New Delhi60 kg
Bronze medal – third place2018 Bishkek65 kg
World U23 Championships
Silver medal – second place2017 Bydgoszcz65kg
Commonwealth Championship
Gold medal – first place 2017 Brakpan65 kg
Gold medal – first place 2016 Singapore[1] 65 kg
Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games
Gold medal – first place 2017 Ashgabat 70 kg
Bolat Turlykhanov Cup
Bronze medal – third place2022 Almaty65 kg

Early life and background

Punia was born in Khudan, Jhajjar, Haryana, India.[5][6] He began wrestling at the age of seven and was encouraged to pursue the sport by his father.[7] Punia grew up in rural area. His family did not have money for traditional sports. Instead, he had to partake in free sports like Wrestling and Kabaddi.[8] Punia's father was a wrestler as well and at a young age, his family enrolled him in a local mud wrestling school. Punia started to skip school to go to wrestling practice.[8] He went to Chattarsal Stadium in 2008 where he was trained by Ramphal Mann. In 2015, his family moved to Sonepat so that he could attend a regional center of Sports Authority of India.

Currently, he works in the Indian Railways on the post of Gazetted officer OSD Sports.[6]

Punia is married to fellow wrestler Sangeeta Phogat.[9]

Career

2013 Asian Wrestling Championships

In New Delhi, India, in the semi-final bout, Bajrang lost 3–1 to Hwang Ryong-hak of North Korea to win the bronze medal in the men's freestyle 60 kg category.

In the Round of 16, he faced Shogo Maeda of Japan, beating him 3–1. His opponent in the quarter-finals was Morad Hassan of Iran whom he beat 3–1 to qualify for the semi-finals.[10]

2013 World Wrestling Championships

In Budapest, Hungary, Bajrang won the bronze medal in the men's freestyle 60 kg category by qualifying for the bronze medal bout through the repechage round. There, he met Enkhsaikhany Nyam-Ochir of Mongolia and beat him 9–2.

In the Round of 32, he faced Vladimir Dubov of Bulgaria who beat him 7–0. With the Bulgarian grappler qualifying for the final bout, Bajrang then faced Shogo Maeda of Japan and earned a walkover. His next opponent was Ivan Guidea of Romania, and with a 10–3 win over the Romanian, Bajrang earned a spot in the bronze medal bout.[11]

2014 Commonwealth Games

In Glasgow, Scotland, he won the silver medal in the men's freestyle 61 kg category, after losing 1–4 to David Tremblay of Canada.

In the Round of 16, Bajrang faced Sasha Madyarchyk of England and beat him 4–0. He faced Marno Plaatjies of South Africa in the quarter-finals and won 4–1. The Nigerian wrestler, Amas Daniel, was his opponent in the semi-finals and overcame him in a 3–1 score line.[12][13]

2014 Asian Games

In Incheon, South Korea, he won the silver medal in the Men's freestyle 61 kg category, after losing 1–3 to Masoud Esmaeilpoorjouybari of Iran.

In the Round of 16, he faced Tuvshintulga Tumenbileg of Mongolia and beat him 3–1. His quarter-finals opponent was Farkhodi Usmonzoda of Tajikistan whom he beat 4–1 to qualify for the semi-finals. He was assured of a medal when he beat Noriyuki Takatsuka of Japan 4–1 in the semi-finals.[14]

2014 Asian Wrestling Championships

In Astana, Kazakhstan, Bajrang won the silver medal in the men's freestyle 61 kg category, losing 0–4 to Masoud Esmaeilpour of Iran.

In the Round of 16, Bajrang met Lee Seung-Chul of South Korea whom he beat 3–1. In the quarter-finals, he faced Noriyuki Takatsuka of Japan whom he beat 3–1 to qualify for the semi-finals. There he met Nazmandakh Lhamgarmaa of Mongolia whom he beat 3–1 to assure himself of a medal.[15]

2015 World Wrestling Championships

Unlike his fellow Narsingh Yadav, Bajrang wasn't able to win a medal at the tournament in Las Vegas and finished 5th.[16]

In the Round of 32, he met Batboldyn Nomin of Mongolia who beat him 10–0. With the Mongolian qualifying for the final bout in the 61 kg category, Bajrang got a chance to contest in the Repêchage round. His first opponent in the repêchage round was Reece Humphrey of the USA whom he beat 6–0 easily. The second repêchage opponent was Beka Lomtadze from Georgia who put up a fight but was ultimately overcome 13–6 by the Indian. Unfortunately, he fell at the last hurdle, drawing the bronze medal bout 6–6 but his opponent Vasyl Shuptar of Ukraine, scoring the last point.[16]

Asian Wrestling Championship 2017

In 2017 May, he won a gold medal at the Asian Wrestling Championship held in Delhi.[6]

Pro Wrestling League

Bajrang was the second acquisition of the JSW owned Bangalore franchise in the auction conducted in New Delhi. The wrestler was picked up for a sum of Rs 29.5 lakh.[17]

The Pro Wrestling League was scheduled to be held from 10 December to 27 December across six cities.[18]

2018 Commonwealth Games

In Gold Coast, Australia, he won the gold medal in the men's freestyle 65 kg category. He overcame Kane Charig of Wales by Technical Superiority to clinch the gold.[19]

2018 Asian Games

On August 19, he won the Men's freestyle 65 kg /Gold medal. He defeated Japanese Wrestler Takatani Daichi 11–8; the score was locked at 6–6 after the first round.[20][21]

2018 World Wrestling Championships

Bajrang won Silver at the 2019 World Wrestling Championships. After that Silver Medal, he claimed World No. 1 in 65 kg category.[22]

2019 World Wrestling Championships

Bajrang won Bronze for the second time at a World Championship, thereby qualifying India for the Tokyo 2020 Olympics in the 65 kg freestyle wrestling event.

2020 Rome Ranking Series

On 18 January, Bajrang defeated Jordan Oliver 4–3 in the final in the 65 kg freestyle category at the Ranking Series.[23]

Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series 2021

In 2021, he won the gold medal in the 65 kg event at the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series 2021 held in Rome, Italy.[24]

2021 Asian Wrestling Championships

He clinched a silver medal at the 2021 Asian Wrestling Championships after losing to Takuto Otoguro in the final.[25]

2020 Tokyo Olympics

On 6 August 2021, he won the pre-quarterfinal match in 65 kg category in 2020 Summer Olympics against Ernazar Akmataliev and his quarter-final match against Morteza Ghiasi Cheka.[26][27]

In the bronze medal match he defeated the Kazakhstani wrestler Daulet Niyazbekov, winning by a margin of 8–0.[28]

Bajrang and other Indian Olympians were featured in a can by the Indian soft drink manufacturer, Thums Up[29]

2022 Commonwealth Games

Bajrang Punia clinched the gold medal with a dominating win over Canada's Lachlan McNeil in the 65kg final bout at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games.[30]

International competitions

World Championship
Year Competition Venue Event Rank Opponent
2022 2022 World Wrestling Championships Belgrade 65 kg 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  Sebastian Rivera (PUR)
2019 2019 World Wrestling Championships Nur-sultan 65 kg 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  Daulet Niyazbekov (KAZ)
2018 2018 World Wrestling Championships Budapest 65 kg 2nd place, silver medalist(s)  Takuto Otoguro (JPN)
2017 2017 World Wrestling Championships Paris France 65 kg 13th  Zurabi Iakobishvili (GEO)
2016 2016 World Wrestling Championships Budapest 61 kg 9th  Akhmednabi Gvarzatilov (AZE)
2015 2015 World Wrestling Championships Las Vegas 61 kg 5th  Batboldyn Nomin (MGL)
2013 2013 World Wrestling Championships Hungry 60 kg 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  Vladimir Dubov (BUL)

U23 World Championship
Year Competition Venue Event Rank Opponent
2017 2017 World U23 Wrestling Championships Bydgoszcz 65 kg 2nd place, silver medalist(s)  Nachyn Kuular (RUS)

Asian Games
Year Competition Venue Event Rank Opponent
2018 2018 Asian Games Jakarta 65kg 1st place, gold medalist(s)  Daichi Takatani (JPN)
2014 2014 Asian Games Incheon 61kg 2nd place, silver medalist(s)  Masoud Esmaeilpour (IRI)

Commonwealth Games
Year Competition Venue Event Rank Opponent
2022 2022 Commonwealth Games Birmingham 65kg 1st place, gold medalist(s)  Lachlan McNeil (CAN)
2018 2018 Commonwealth Games Gold Coast 65kg 1st place, gold medalist(s)  Kane Charig (WAL)
2014 2014 Commonwealth Games Glasgow 61kg 2nd place, silver medalist(s)  David Tremblay (CAN)

Asian Wrestling Championship
Year Competition Venue Event Rank Opponent
2021 2021 Asian Wrestling Championships Almaty 65kg 2nd place, silver medalist(s)  Takuto Otoguro (JPN)
2020 2020 Asian Wrestling Championships New Delhi 65kg 2nd place, silver medalist(s)  Takuto Otoguro (JPN)
2019 2019 Asian Wrestling Championships Xi'an 65kg 1st place, gold medalist(s)  Sayatbek Okassov (KAZ)
2018 2018 Asian Wrestling Championships Bishkek 65kg 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  Daichi Takatani (JPN)
2017 2017 Asian Wrestling Championships New Delhi 65kg 1st place, gold medalist(s)  Seunghui Lee (KOR)
2016 2016 Asian Wrestling Championships Bangkok 65kg 10th  Kum Su JON (PRK)
2014 2014 Asian Wrestling Championships Astana 61kg 2nd place, silver medalist(s)  Masoud Esmaeilpour (IRI)
2013 2013 Asian Wrestling Championships New Delhi 60kg 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  Yang Jae-hoon (KOR)

Olympics
Year Competition Venue Event Rank Opponent
2021 Tokyo Olympics 2020 Tokyo 65 kg 3rd place, bronze medalist(s)  Daulet Niyazbekov (Kazakhstan)

Record against opponents

Awards
The President, Ram Nath Kovind presenting the Padma Shri Award to Punia at the Rashtrapati Bhavan in New Delhi, 2019.
For winning the bronze medal at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics

Recent Activism
Main article: 2023 Indian wrestlers' protest

Punia has been protesting against the alleged sexual harassment of female wrestlers by Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) Chief - Brij Bhushan Singh. The instances of sexual harassment ranged from 2012 to 2022.[39] Punia has called on the public to show their support at Jantar Mantar, New Delhi.

Following a scuffle between wrestlers and Delhi police at Jantar Mantar, Punia expressed concern about the treatment of wrestlers and its implications for their careers, stating, [40][41][42][43]

"What are we supposed to do with the medals if this is how we are going to be treated? It is unfortunate that a person accused of sexual harassment attended the inauguration of the new Parliament building. It took Delhi Police only a few hours to register an FIR against us but it took them 7 days to register an FIR against Brij Bhushan Singh".

References
  1. "India dominates". The Hindu. 7 November 2016. Archived from the original on 8 November 2016. Retrieved 8 November 2016.
  2. Sen, Rohan (7 August 2021). "Tokyo 2020: Wrestler Bajrang Punia beats Daulet Niyazbekov to win bronze, adds 6th medal in India's tally". India Today. Tokyo. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  3. "WHO IS BAJRANG PUNIA". Business Standard India. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  4. "Head of Indian wrestling federation accused of sexual harassment". The Guardian. Reuters in Delhi. 19 January 2023. Retrieved 25 April 2023.
  5. Saini, Ravinder (31 July 2014). "Silver medallist Bajrang's native village erupts in joy". The Tribune. Tribune News Service. Archived from the original on 3 March 2018. Retrieved 6 April 2018.
  6. Saini, Ravinder (14 May 2017). "Bajrang's village celebrates the proud moment". The Tribune. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  7. "Glasgow 2014 - Bajrang Bajrang Profile". g2014results.thecgf.com. Commonwealth Games Federation. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  8. Henry, Blaine (1 June 2020). "Bajrang Punia: In The Middle of Difficulty Lies Opportunity". fight-library.com. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  9. Venkat, Rahul (23 February 2021). "Indian wrestler Bajrang Punia married Sangeeta Phogat in a low-key ceremony in Phogat's village in Haryana". olympics.com.
  10. "International Wrestling Database". iat.uni-leipzig.de. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  11. "Wrestler Bajrang wins bronze, gives India second medal at Worlds-Sports News". Firstpost. 18 September 2013. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
  12. "Bajrang Kumar wins bronze at World Wrestling Championships". CNN-IBN. 17 September 2013. Archived from the original on 20 September 2013. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
  13. Sejwal, Ritu (17 September 2013). "Bajrang wins bronze at World Wrestling Championships". The Times of India. Archived from the original on 21 September 2013. Retrieved 19 September 2013.
  14. "Athletes_Profile | Biographies | Sports". incheon2014ag.org. Archived from the original on 4 October 2014. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
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  16. "International Wrestling Database". iat.uni-leipzig.de. Archived from the original on 8 October 2015. Retrieved 30 October 2015.
  17. Kumaraswamy, K (3 November 2015). "JSW bag Narsingh at Pro Wrestling League auction". The Times of India. Retrieved 24 August 2021.
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  24. "Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series 2021" (PDF). United World Wrestling. Archived (PDF) from the original on 21 March 2021. Retrieved 21 March 2021.
  25. Dutta, Subhayan (23 February 2021). "The Takuto Otoguro conundrum for Bajrang Punia". olympics.com.
  26. "Olympic Schedule & Results - 6 Aug". Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Archived from the original on 24 August 2021. Retrieved 6 August 2021.
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  29. "Thums Up faces brickbats for roping in athletes in its latest ad for Olympics". Exchange4media. Retrieved 20 May 2022.
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  39. "Wrestlers protest: 7 days to register FIR against Brij Bhushan, few hours for FIR against us, says Bajrang Punia". The Economic Times. 29 May 2023.
  40. Tewari, Samridhi (4 May 2023). "Ready to return our medals, says Bajrang Punia a day after scuffle with police". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
  41. "Why are top Indian wrestlers protesting on the streets?". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 5 May 2023.
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