Indian wrestling witnessed a historic moment as Sujeet Kalkal clinched the gold medal in the men’s freestyle 65kg category at the U23 World Wrestling Championships. Kalkal delivered a commanding 10-0 victory over Uzbekistan’s Umidjon Jalolov, winning the bout by technical superiority in just under five minutes.
This triumph is particularly special for Kalkal, who had won bronze in the same tournament last year. Over the course of the championship, he showcased consistent dominance, defeating Moldova’s Fiodor Ceavdari (12-2) and Poland’s Dominik Jakub (11-0) in earlier rounds. In a thrilling semifinal, Kalkal executed a decisive last-second move to edge out Japan’s Yuto Nishiuchi 3-2, securing his place in the final.
Prior to this world title, Kalkal had already earned two U23 Asian Championship golds (2022, 2025) and a U20 Asian Championship gold (2022), marking a steady rise in his international career. With this victory, Kalkal has firmly established himself as one of India’s brightest prospects in wrestling.
The win not only upgrades his medal from last year but also reinforces India’s growing presence on the global wrestling stage.
Other Indian wrestlers had mixed results at the championships. Shubham (61kg) lost in the 1/8th round to Azerbaijan’s Jeyhun Allahverdiyev, while Ashish (86kg) fell 4-6 to Iran’s Abolfazl Yaser Rahmani. In the 97kg category, Vicky showed promise, winning his first bout 10-0 against Uzbekistan’s Otabek Nazirboev, before narrowly losing 13-15 to Georgia’s Merab Suleimanishvili.
With Kalkal leading the way, Indian wrestling continues to make waves at the U23 World Championships, promising a bright future for the sport.
