In a major event, Sakshi Malik gave up wrestling amid Sanjay Singh’s selection as Wrestling Federation of India President on Thursday, December 21. India’s top female wrestler announced her decision to quit wrestling during a joint press conference in New Delhi.
The 31-year-old star was the first-ever female wrestler to win a medal at the Summer Olympics. She claimed the historic bronze at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics and holds medals in Commonwealth and Asian Games as well.
“Today, we all witnessed what unfolded,” Sakshi told reporters. “Brijbhushan’s right-hand person became the president. Our demand was for a female president, and it’s disappointing to see that no female was elected. The battle will persist, and the next generation of wrestlers will also have to fight.
“We slept for 40 days on the roads and a lot of people from several parts of the country came to support us. If Brij Bhushan Singh’s business partner and a close aide is elected as the president of WFI, I quit wrestling.”
Sakshi held the press conference with fellow wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat to show their displeasure at Sanjay Singh’s selection as WFI President. Sanjay is a close aide of the former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Singh and beat Commonwealth Games gold medallist Anita Sheoran by a margin of 40:7.
Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat also shared their feelings and criticized the decision.
“We weren’t fighting the government, our fight was with a particular person who was molesting our sisters everyday. He used everything to give different deviations to the case because he has power, this shows nobody’s future is safe,” Bajrang Punia said.
“There are minimal expectations but we hope that we get justice. It’s saddening that the future of wrestling is in the dark. To whom shall we convey our grief?… We are still fighting,” Vinesh Phogat said.