Federation Cup: Sanjeev claims Greco Roman 55kg gold medal

The 23-year-old Delhi boy from Sonipat-based coach Kuldeep Singh’s akhara impressed in every bout before outclassing Manish in the final to win his maiden gold medal at the elite level.

Delhi’s Sanjeev (DEL) on his way to win the gold medal match against Manish (HAR) in the Greco Roman 55kg category in the federation cup wrestling tournament, in Varanasi on Friday. | Photo Credit: SANDEEP SAXENA/ The Hindu

Sanjeev displayed a series of authoritative performances on his way to claim the Greco Roman 55kg gold medal in the Federation Cup wrestling tournament at the Maharaja Vibhuti Narain Indoor Stadium here on Friday.

The 23-year-old Delhi boy from Sonipat-based coach Kuldeep Singh’s akhara impressed in every bout before outclassing Manish in the final to win his maiden gold medal at the elite level.

Sanjeev, who bagged a silver and a bronze in National championships at Jaipur and Pune respectively by rival factions earlier this year, went 1-0 up due to Manish’s passivity and utilised his advantageous position in par terre to flip his rival for a 3-0 lead. Another take-down made it 5-0, but Manish injured his left ankle in the process and conceded the bout.

Kolhapur’s Pravin Patil, an Army wrestler who landed a gold at Pune, rallied from 0-2 to beat Sunny Kumar 6-2 in the 63kg title clash. Patil’s take-downs helped him secure victory.

The medallists (Greco Roman)

55kg: 1. Sanjeev (Del), 2. Manish (Har), 3. Manu Yadav (Chg), Anjit Munda (Jha); 60kg: 1. Chetan (Del), 2. Ajeet Kumar (UP), 3. Mohit Narwal (Har), Abhishek Nishad (Chg); 63kg: 1. Pravin Patil (Mah), 2. Sunny Kumar (Har), 3. Deshraj (Raj), Hariom Puri (MP); 67kg: 1. Govind (Mah), 2. Bholu Dav (UP), 3. Deepak (Del), Himanshu (Har); 72kg: 1. Ajay Dagar (Har), 2. Jagmal Singh (Raj), 3. Anil Ruhil (Chd), Anish Singh (Chg); 77kg: 1. Ravi Kumar (Del), 2. Satender Yadav (Chg), 3. Parmanand Bujammagol (Kar), Chhagan Meena (Raj); 82kg: 1. Hardeep (Har), 2. Amit Gope (Jha), 3. Bhupender (Raj), Praveen Hipparigi (Kar); 87kg: 1. Ajay (Har), 2. Inderjit (Chd), 3. Darshan (Mah), Aditya Bedikyale (Kar); 97kg: 1. Sonu (Har), 2. Vijender (Del), 3. Subham Kumar (Bih), Ritik (Chd); 130kg: 1. Sonu (Del), 2. Yatendra (UP), 3. Mudassir Khan (MP), Ashish (Chd).