From yearning to fly in an aeroplane as a kid to clinching a bronze in the Olympics, the world’s biggest sporting event, 23-year-old Haryanvi wrestler Sakshi Malik has come a long way in her journey to etch her name in the country’s sporting history.
Bringing home India’s 25th Olympic medal and the first women’s wrestling medal, Sakshi ended the country’s painful wait for a medal at the Rio Olympic Games by taking full advantage of the repechage and clinching the bronze medal in the 58kg category.
Beginnings
Born and brought up in a small village Mokhra in the Rohtak District of Haryana, Sakshi tried playing kabaddi and cricket in her childhood but wrestling became her favourite sport after she started “winning bouts”.
At the age of twelve, much to the dismay of her villagers but with support from her parents, Sakshi joined the akhara in Chhotu Ram Stadium and started training under the guidance of Ishwar Dahiya.
I never knew about Olympics, I wanted to become a sportsperson to travel in an aeroplane. If you can represent India, you can board a plane, and fly.Sakshi Malik, Indian Wrestler
Her mother Sudesh, a government servant and father Sukhbir, an employee with Delhi Transport Corporation had initially been hesitant with Sakshi’s choice of taking up wrestling but the Haryana grappler was not one to back down.
Relentless Hardwork
Missing her aloo parantha and kadhi chawal, Sakshi had been on a strict liquid, carb-free diet prior to the games. Not someone who likes to travel, chill with friends or go out for movies, a super-focused Sakshi had been living at the Sports Authority of India hostel for the past year.
Among Companionship and Rivalry
Growing up Sakshi always looked up to the legendary family of Phogat wrestlers for inspiration. Often overshadowed by the Phogat girls in the past, Malik has now managed to make a mark in the history of Indian sports.
Eldest of the Phogat sisters, Geeta who qualified for the 2012 London games was a huge inspiration for Sakshi. Even after Sakshi qualified for the Olympics, training with Geeta was a privilege for her.
Road to Rio
Sakshi’s first international success came when she won a bronze at the 2010 Junior World Championships in the 59kg category. Four years later, Sakshi won a gold at the Dave Schultz International Wrestling Tournament in 60kg and the biggest moment of her career came at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games in 2014 where she won a silver medal.
Two months later, Sakshi crashed out of the World Wrestling Championships quarterfinals in Tashkent finishing a poor eighth. But she again came into reckoning by winning a bronze at the Asian Championships in Doha 2015.
Having failed in her first few tries to qualify for the Rio games, Sakshi was forced to cede her berth to Geeta didi for the Mongolia qualifiers. Call it her luck, but Geeta failed to make the most of the opportunity and Sakshi had one last chance in Turkey to seal her Rio dream. And she did, beating a former world champion to follow Vinesh Phogat as the second woman wrestler from India to qualify for Rio.
Unfortunately, Vinesh was forced to retire from the tournament due to an injury during her bout, but Sakshi did not disappoint, Sakshi won India that long-awaited medal.
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(With PTI inputs)
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