WFI decides not to field team in Worlds in present circumstances

The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) will not field an Indian team in the World championships unless the Union Sports Ministry revokes its order to de-recognise the National body, the federation president Sanjay Singh said.

The WFI had announced that it would hold the trials in New Delhi on October 6 and 7 to select teams for the World under-23 championships and World championships respectively.

Following the Delhi High Court order that the WFI had no jurisdiction to hold selections and the trials would be conducted by an Indian Olympic Association (IOA) appointed ad-hoc committee, the WFI decided not to hold the trials.

“We will not send any team to the World championships. The problem is due to the Government’s de-recognition (of an elected WFI on December 24). I will write to the UWW stating that because of Government interference we are not able to send a team as doing so will result in contempt of court,” Sanjay told The Hindu on Saturday.

“It’s not good for the wrestlers who have been performing so well.”

The World under-23 championships is going to be held from October 21 to 27, followed by the elite World championships (in non-Olympic weights) from October 28 to 31 in Tirana, Albania.

Sanjay said WFI would conduct talent search events on the given dates.

“If the Government revokes the de-recognition after today’s Haryana elections, then we may send the wrestlers selected from the talent search to the World championships.”

A contempt petition was filed by wrestler Satyawart Kadian, husband of Olympic medallist Sakshi Malik and a leading face of the wrestlers’ protest last year, contending that different parties, including the Government and the WFI, failed to comply with the court’s August 16 order to restore the ad-hoc committee (on the ground that the ad-hoc panel’s dissolution was not compatible with the Government’s decision to de-recognise the WFI) for running the WFI. He also sought a stay on the trials proposed by the WFI.

An ad-hoc body looked after day-to-day affairs of the federation when it was suspended by the UWW in August 2023 for not holding its elections in the aftermath of the wrestlers’ protest. Later, the ad-hoc body was reconstituted after the de-recognition of the WFI by the Government.

After lifting its suspension in February, the UWW, in April last, threatened to suspend the WFI again prior to the Olympics if the Government interfered in the national federation’s affairs, following which the IOA dissolved the ad-hoc body.

Published - October 05, 2024 05:27 pm IST