Bajrang Punia loses in Olympic semi-finals after a resounding win over Iranian wrestler

By Sanjay Maurya

News Highlights

Wrestler Bajrang Punia was defeated 5-12 by Haji Aliyev of Azerbaijan in the Men’s 65kg Freestyle semi-final.
Punia defeated Ernazar Akmataliev of Kyrgyzstan and Murtaza Ghiasi of Iran to reach the men’s freestyle lightweight semi-finals.
Bajrang Punia’s father has said that Punia would bring a medal to India from the Tokyo Olympics 2020.

Bajrang Punia loses in Olympic semi-finals after a resounding win over Iranian wrestler

Wrestler Bajrang Punia was defeated 5-12 by Haji Aliyev of Azerbaijan in the Men’s 65kg Freestyle semi-final on 6^th August. Punia defeated Ernazar Akmataliev of Kyrgyzstan and Murtaza Ghiasi of Iran to reach the men’s freestyle lightweight semi-finals. Now fight for a bronze medal.

Bajrang Punia resounding win over Iranian wrestler

Bajrang Punia reached the semi-finals of the 65kg event after a win over an Iranian wrestler. He was warned again in the second round after slipping behind in the first round owing to inaction. Punia managed to pin his opponent and win the quarterfinal match in a stunning turnaround.

Bajrang beat Iran’s Morteza Ghiasi Cheka by pinning him to the mat (winning by fall). Indian started over to a shaky start in the match, as he was penalized for passivity and gifted one point to Morteza Ghiasi Cheka heading into the second session.

Even in the second half, Bajrang faced another charge of passivity from the referee, but this time the 27-year-old kept his cool and showed his true class by defending well against Ghiasi’s right leg hold. Punia quickly won after a spectacular takedown of the Iranian, earning two points, and then pinning the Ghiasi to advance to the next round.

About Bajrang Punia

Bajrang Punia is a Haryana-based Indian freestyle wrestler. In the 65 kg weight category, he is presently ranked first. He is the only wrestler from India to have won three World Wrestling Championship medals.

Punia was born on February 26, 1994, in the village of Khudan in the Jhajjar district of Haryana. He began wrestling at the age of seven and was inspired to continue by his father, who was also a wrestler. His family relocated to Sonepat in 2015 so that he could join the Sports Authority of India’s regional center. Currently, Punia works for the Railways.

Balwan Singh, Bajrang Punia’s father has said that Punia would bring a medal to India from the Tokyo Olympics 2020.