Sushil, Yogeshwar to skip Asian championship

Indian fans would be deprived of watching their Olympic medal winning grapplers Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt in action at the upcoming Senior Asian Wrestling Championship as the two have not yet recovered from their respective injuries.

Amit Dhankar (66kg) and Bajrang (60kg), who were named as reserves, will replace Suhil and Yogeshwar for thechampionship, starting from April 18.

"Both Sushil and Yogeshwar are nursing their injuries. During the trials last month, they had said that they will be fit for the completion. But we can't force them to participate.

They are consulting their doctors and will hopefully return to the arena soon," Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president, Brij Bhushan Singh said.

"Events such as this are a test for the new crop of wrestlers. It gives them an opportunity to perform. And that too in front of their home crowd," Bhushan added.

In the championship, more than 225 wrestlers from 19 countries will be competing in the three disciplines -- Freestyle, Greco-Roman and Female in the five-day event.

Asian powerhouses such as China, Japan and Kazakhstan, besides hosts will be fielding wrestlers in every weight category at the K D Jadhav Wrestling Stadium.

The Pakistan team was also invited by the organisers for the continental championship, but its federation did not send any representation.

"We had sent an invite and also spoke to the Pakistani federation. They cited lack of funds as the reason for not sending entries. We would have wanted them to participate as well," Managing chairman of the Asian championship, G S Mandher said.

The entry for the general public will be through complimentary tickets which would be available at the WFI's offices besides the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex.

Photograph: Cameron Spencer/Getty Images