WFI chief declares victory, focus shifts to Olympic trials

Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President Sanjay Singh on Tuesday welcomed the United World Wrestling (UWW)'s decision to lift its suspension with immediate effect and said that the ad-hoc committee headed by Bhupinder Singh Bajwa "holds no significance".

The suspension was imposed by UWW on August 23 last year after the national federation failed to hold elections in time.

"I welcome this decision by UWW. Ad-hoc committee holds no significance now," Singh, who is known to be a loyalist of former WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, told PTI.

"We have been officially recognised, and my suspension has ended. Therefore, seeking legal advice holds no significance for us," added Singh, who wanted to take the legal route amid his run-ins with the ad-hoc committee.

The UWW has directed the national federation to provide written guarantees that there would be no discriminatory action against the trio of Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik, who had protested on the streets of national capital while demanding the ouster of Brij Bhushan for alleged sexual harassment against multiple women wrestlers.

"I am committed to ensuring that no child's future is jeopardized. Since day one, I have advocated protection of the future of every wrestler. I will extend invitations to them for the upcoming trials organised by us," Singh said.

The Paris Olympics will be held in July this year and the WFI president assured that the itinerary of trials and other events in the calender will be released soon.

"We will convene a meeting to determine the date and other details for the trials. We will send a letter to the Sports Ministry regarding this and the ministry will make the final decision."

Singh urged all wrestlers in contention for national selection to attend the trials.

"Currently, my entire focus is on sports and the athletes. As it's an Olympic year, our primary goal is to progress in sports and support our athletes. Everyone is encouraged to participate and prepare for the upcoming trials."