Manisha Bhanwala scripted history on Friday, October 30, becoming the first Indian woman to win a gold medal at the World Championships in Astana, . The 29-year-old defeated American wrestler Abigail Nette 8-6 in the women’s 59kg final, producing a remarkable comeback after trailing by six points.
Although the 59kg category is a non-weight class, the achievement marks a significant milestone for Indian wrestling, as no Indian woman had previously won a senior world championship title.
Manisha’s triumph capped a successful campaign for India’s women wrestlers. Two other grapplers, Neelam Sirohi (50kg) and Kajal Dhochak (76kg), had reached the finals in Olympic weight categories but settled for silver medals.
Before this edition, Anshu Malik was the only Indian woman to have reached a World Championships final, winning silver in the 57kg category in 2021. Vinesh Phogat, one of India’s most accomplished wrestlers, has won two bronze medals at the World Championships. Antim Panghal has also claimed two bronze medals, both in Olympic weight categories.
In men’s freestyle wrestling, two-time Olympic medallist Sushil Kumar remains India’s other senior world champion. He won gold in the 66kg category at the 2010 World Championships in Moscow. Bajrang Punia also reached the final at the 2018 World Championships in Budapest but had to settle for silver.
Manisha’s gold marked a significant turnaround for India’s women’s wrestling team after a disappointing campaign at the Asian Games, where the wrestlers failed to meet expectations and Antim Panghal was the only one to return with a medal, winning silver in the 53kg category.
At the Asian Games, Manisha competed in the 57kg category, an Olympic weight class, but lost to Japan’s Akari Fujinami in the quarterfinals. She subsequently opted to compete in the 59kg category at the World Championships, a decision that paid rich dividends.
The wrestler produced a series of impressive performances en route to the final. She defeated world championships bronze medallist Laurence Beauregard before pinning her opponent to the mat. She then overcame Mongolia’s Bolortuya Khurelkhuu and pinned Kazakhstan’s Altyn Shagayeva to secure her place in the title clash.
The final against American wrestler Abigail Nette, a Pan American champion, proved to be a tough contest. Manisha fell behind 0-6 but mounted a spirited comeback, launching a series of effective attacks to turn the contest around and clinch an 8-6 victory.
Hailing from Jind in Haryana, the 29-year-old comes from a farming family where sport runs deep. Her brother Rinku is a kabaddi player, while her sister-in-law Mamta Sihag is also a wrestler.
It was watching her brother play kabaddi in their village that first inspired Manisha to take up sports.
“We all played sports in the family. She used to watch me play kabaddi in the village and that inspired her. We then decided that she should take up an individual sport rather than a team game. She was physically strong and mental toughness was always her biggest strength,” Rinku told PTI.
However, the road to the historic gold was not without heartbreak.
Rinku still vividly remembers the morning Manisha was supposed to leave for Mongolia for the Asian Championships. Their father had attended a ‘jagran’ the previous night and passed away in his sleep due to a cardiac arrest the following morning.
Manisha was deeply attached to her family and was shattered by the loss. She did not want to leave home and even contemplated giving up wrestling.
“She was preparing to leave, but our father passed away that very morning. He had attended a jagran and died in his sleep. She was so attached to all of us that she did not want to go.
“We had to tell her that all the efforts our father had made to make her a wrestling champion would go to waste if she gave up. We somehow convinced her to board the flight to Mongolia,” Rinku recalled.
Manisha eventually competed at the tournament and returned with a bronze medal. That marked the beginning of a journey that would eventually take her to the top of the wrestling world. She went on to win three more Asian medals, including a gold last year.
Before leaving for Astana, Manisha had another special preparation. She got a white T-shirt printed with photographs of her parents, carrying their memories with her to the biggest competition of her life.
“She had got the pictures of our parents printed on a white T-shirt before leaving for Astana. It was her determination that she would win gold and show that T-shirt to everyone. She did exactly that,” Rinku said.
“It was our family’s dream that she become a world champion, and today she has achieved it. This is even more special for our father. His dream and the dream of the entire family have come true,” he added.
When Manisha displayed that T-shirt after her stunning 8-6 comeback victory over American Abigail Nette in the final, she was bringing her father into a moment he had dreamed of but never got to witness.
From watching her brother play kabaddi in a village in Haryana to becoming the first Indian woman wrestling world champion, Manisha’s journey has been one of family sacrifice, resilience and an unshakeable bond with her roots.
She switched weight categories several times, competing in 62kg, 65kg and 57kg, before winning the biggest prize of her career in the non-Olympic 59kg category at the age of 29.
