Dream was to wear India on my jersey: Tanu after Worlds bronze

Wearing the Indian jersey and representing the country on the international stage was a childhood dream for Tanu Sharma, who saw that come true with a bronze medal at the Senior World Wrestling Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan, despite battling injuries in the build-up to the competition.

Tanu and fellow medallist Neelam Sirohi received a warm welcome at the Indira Gandhi International (IGI) Airport on their return on Saturday night after contributing to India’s four-medal haul in women’s freestyle wrestling. The 20-year-old Tanu, who had won a silver medal at the Under-20 World Championships just weeks earlier, said her junior-level success gave her the confidence to make an impact at the senior level.

“Yes, it was my dream to become a World Champion someday. When I was little, I had only one dream: to have ‘India’ written on the back of my jersey, represent my country and step onto the mat. When I used to watch my seniors, I would get goosebumps thinking that one day I would do all this too,” she told PTI Videos.

“When I went to the Under-20 competition, I was fully confident that I would win a medal, and I came back with one. That gave me even more courage and confidence that I could do something better and achieve something bigger. Then I trained hard, and I got selected as well,” she added.

Tanu said she also worked on the mistakes she made in the Under-20 final, where she lost by a narrow 3-4 margin, to prepare better for the senior competition.

“In the Under-20 final, I lost by a close score of 3-4. I watched that bout two to three times and repeatedly analysed it to understand what mistakes I had made. I worked on those mistakes, and that is what helped me move forward,” she said.

Her preparation for the bronze medal bout included studying her American opponent’s previous performances and identifying her own strengths.

“We found out in the evening that I would be wrestling against the USA opponent. I spent the entire day watching three to four of her bouts to understand her attacks and what she does. Then I recalled my own bouts, what I do well and how I could put more pressure on her. I worked on being aggressive and using my strengths to win the medal,” she said.

The 72kg category is not part of the Olympic programme, and Tanu said she would be willing to change her weight division to pursue her Olympic dream. She also revealed that an ankle injury just 15 days before the competition, along with an earlier knee issue, had made her campaign challenging.

“Since this weight category is not there in the Olympics, if I want to compete at the Olympics, I will definitely change my weight. I may lose weight or gain weight, whichever is required,” she said.

“Injuries do happen to athletes. There is no sport that can be played completely safely. Just 15 days before the competition, I suffered an ankle injury, and I had a knee issue earlier as well. But we can reach this level only by overcoming such challenges.

“Now I have the Senior Nationals coming up, followed by the trials for next year’s Commonwealth Games and the Olympics,” she added.

Neelam, meanwhile, said her silver medal in the 50kg category was the culmination of years of training and perseverance, having competed at the World Championships since 2022 without a podium finish.

“I am feeling extremely good. I have been practising for this medal for many years. I have been competing at the World Championships since 2022, but things were not working out. My parents, my coaches and my uncle (Fufa ji) always told me that I could become a World Champion, and today I have proved it,” she said.

Neelam, who lost to Japan’s four-time world champion Yui Susaki in the final, admitted she had expected a better performance but remained determined to improve.

“Against Yui Susaki, I had the confidence that I could perform better, but I could not do that on the day. However, I will do better in the future,” she said.

She also confirmed that she suffered a minor shoulder injury during the final but was recovering well, with her sights set on securing Olympic qualification at the next World Championships.

“I suffered a slight shoulder injury during the final bout, but I am feeling better now. My focus is on the next World Championships, and my target is to secure qualification for the Olympics directly from there,” she said.

Neelam dedicated the medal to her family, coaches and teammates, saying several people had contributed to her journey.

“There are many people whose hard work has gone into this medal. I cannot name just one person. My parents, coaches, my uncle who introduced me to wrestling, my maternal uncles, my grandfather and many others have supported me.

“My teammates and fellow wrestlers also stand by me, especially when I lose, and encourage me to keep moving forward. I want to thank all of them,” she signed off.