Before she embarked on her journey to Paris, Reetika Hooda spoke with The Quint, brimming with confidence. She declared:
My target is to create a record at the 2024 Paris Olympics by winning the gold medal. Many Indian wrestlers have won bronze and silver medals, but no one has ever won a gold medal at the Olympics. I want to be the first one.Reetika Hooda
Little did she realise that in just a few weeks, the hopes of an entire nation would rest solely on her shoulders. As the Games progress, Reetika now stands as India's last hope for an elusive gold medal.
The Indian contingent of 117 athletes has so far returned with six medals – five bronze and one silver, the latter claimed by Tokyo gold medallist Neeraj Chopra.
While every Olympic gold medal represents a triumph over adversity, Reetika’s path to glory is especially daunting. Her first opponent in the women’s 76kg category on Saturday (9 August) will be Hungary’s Bernadett Nagy – a two-time European Championships medallist, currently ranked 16th in the world.
Should Reetika cross that hurdle, she could find herself matching gaze with the seemingly indomitable Aiperi Medet Kyzy of Kyrgyzstan – a two-time World Championships medallist, currently ranked first.
Reetika, though, is not a stranger to creating records.
Not a Stranger To Creating Records
Before heading to Paris, she was not considered a prime medal contender. The same was true before the 2023 U-23 World Wrestling Championships
Her quarter-final and semi-final opponents – Rita Talismanova and Anastasiya Alpyeyeva – are both ranked among the top 10. Her final opponent, Kennedy Blades, is also ranked much higher comparatively.
Reetika defeated all of them, and subsequently, won the gold medal, becoming the first Indian to win an U-23 World Championships gold.
She recalls:
India has won numerous medals at the U-23 World Championships, but no one has won a gold medal. So, when I went to Albania for that competition, I wanted to be the first Indian to do so. Record agar banwana hai to gold to chahiye tha (I had to win the gold medal to be in the record books). I was successful in doing that.Reetika Hooda
Her next target was to create another record.
No Indian had ever earned an Olympics quota in the 76kg division, so my next target was to become the first one to do so.Reetika Hooda
At the Asian Olympic Qualifiers, Reetika once again defied expectations by defeating higher-ranked opponents like Wang Juan and Chang Hui-tsz to secure her spot in Paris.
On being asked about whether she was intimidated by the stature of her opponents, the 21-year-old from Haryana stated:
I was not intimidated, because I did my homework. I had worked on my game, but also on theirs, too. I had watched bouts of my opponents and with my coach, I made specific plans for every wrestler. Our draws are announced a day before the bout, so whenever I find out whom I am facing, I like to review all that I know about my opponent and figure out their weaknesses. It is like how a night before the exams you review your preparation. I will do that before my Olympic bouts as well.Reetika Hooda
Listening to Father’s Advice Paid Dividends
Hailing from Haryana’s Kharkda village, Reetika had always envisaged a life in sports, but not wrestling. It entered her life at the insistence of her father, Jagbir Hooda.
I loved sports since I was a kid, but I did not plan on becoming a wrestler. I started out playing handball, where I used to be a goalkeeper. I also played kabaddi. My interests predominantly were in team sports, but my father insisted that I pursue wrestling. He was of the opinion that team sports might not earn me much success because it is dependent on the collective, whereas in an individual sport like wrestling, success is dependent only on my work.Reetika Hooda
Sceptical at first, as she was hesitant to let go of handball and kabaddi, Reetika found herself drawn to the sport after just one day of training.
It has only been eight years since I started wrestling. I had never thought that with just eight years of training, I would be competing at a stage like the Olympics. I guess it is because of the strong bond I have with this sport. Right from the first day, I have enjoyed wrestling and wanted to progress. Since I loved doing what I was doing, no one has had to push me to train harder. That calling came from within. What also helped was that my great-grandfather and my uncles were wrestlers, so I could turn to people in my family for help and guidance.Reetika Hooda
Inspired by Sakshi Malik
Reetika’s journey began at Rohtak’s Chhotu Ram Stadium, the same place where Sakshi Malik once trained. The sight of Sakshi qualifying for the Rio Olympics in 2016 served as a powerful motivator for Reetika.
I started my career at the same place where Sakshi didi used to train. She was not an Olympian back then, but only a few months later, we got the news that she had qualified for the Rio Olympics. That was a huge motivation, seeing someone who had trained at the same place as me going to the Olympics. It inspired me to replicate her achievement.Reetika Hooda
Reetika frequently revisits the bout where Sakshi defeated Kyrgyzstan’s Aisuluu Tynybekova, winning the bronze medal.
She has been a huge inspiration. I watch her bronze medal-winning bout at the Olympics even now, just to get a feeling of the happiness an Olympic medal brings. It motivates me. I train under her coach Mandeep Singh, so he also keeps telling me about Sakshi didi’s journey and what she did to win the medal.Reetika Hooda
Adapting to a New Weight Division
Having started her career in the 69kg category, Reetika has achieved most of her accolades in the 72kg division, including an Asian Championships bronze medal.
However, she had to make a critical transition to the 76kg category a year ago, because the Olympics does not feature a 72kg division.
About her transition, Reetika says:
Getting into the 76kg category has been the turning point of my career. I have had plenty of success since making that switch. The transition was not easy. Initially, I used to feel I didn't have the strength for this division. But the Reliance Foundation has helped me a lot in this matter. They have provided support in strength and conditioning, as well as nutrition, and you can see the results.Reetika Hooda
The Challenges of a Transition
Shruti Gharat, Reliance Foundation’s physio who has been working with Reetika, elaborates on the challenges faced during the switch.
She was doing really well in the 72kg category, but a year before the Olympics, we advised her to switch to the 76kg category. Just give it a try and see if it works out. Initially, it was very difficult to get her weight up to that bracket, because it was new for her. The diet was totally different from what she was used to, and it was a struggle to get accustomed to it. But she worked hard and eventually did that.Shruti Gharat, Reetika Hooda's Physio
Getting accustomed to the new diet was one of the challenges, but not the only one.
The second challenge was to maintain her weight, because whenever she travels for competitions, she loses weight. Her weight loss tendency is drastic, say a day’s training will result in a 1kg loss. Even at the Olympics trial, she was about 500 grams short of the optimum weight. So, we are having to closely monitor her weight and ensure it stays at where we want it to be.Shruti Gharat, Reetika Hooda's Physio
Injury prevention has been an ongoing concern as well.
The other concern is injuries. The optimum weight to maintain during practice for wrestlers of her category is 78kg, but we don’t have many female wrestlers of that weight in India. So, she has to train with the boys. It often results in injuries, but we are doing everything to ensure she stays injury-free.Shruti Gharat, Reetika Hooda's Physio
The Dream To See a Flying Tricolour
For a wrestler who was competing in junior categories just a year ago, the Olympics presents a stern test.
However, Shruti is confident in Reetika’s abilities.
Reetika is never afraid of the wrestlers she has to face, be it the best in the world. That is the trait which has set her apart from other Indian wrestlers in the 76kg category. Once she is determined to do something, she will find a way to do it.Shruti Gharat, Reetika Hooda's Physio
Reetika’s motivation goes beyond personal glory.
I was of course very happy when I won the U-23 World Championships gold, but perhaps, the lone blemish was that I could not see my country’s flag being raised. WFI (Wrestling Federation of India) was suspended at that time, so I had to wrestle under the UWW (United World Wrestling) banner. I want to see the Indian tricolour being raised, and hopefully, it will be in Paris.Reetika Hooda
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