Bajrang Punia and Ravi Dahiya - both medallists from the 2021 Tokyo Olympics - lost in Sunday's trials to determine the Indian squad that will compete at the upcoming Paris Olympic qualifiers.
Bajrang, who won bronze in Tokyo, returned to the mat for the first time since the Asian Games and lost a lopsided semifinal bout to Rohit Kumar in the men's 65kg category. Tokyo Olympics silver medallist Ravi, who made a comeback after a lengthy injury layoff, was ousted by Udit in the men's 57kg trials.
However, the wrestlers are now staring at an uncertain future. Especially since there are two centres of power currently: the elected Wrestling Federation of India [WFI] panel led by Sanjay Singh and the Indian Olympic Association-appointed ad-hoc committee. The two parties have agreed to work together for the ongoing selections and the WFI will send the final list to United World Wrestling [UWW].
That brings us to the wrestlers' dilemma: as it stands, they won't have a chance to win an Olympic quota at the upcoming Asian Olympic Qualifiers...but will they be allowed to have one last shot at an Olympic berth when [if and when] the final trials are held? [assuming India wins a quota in the 57kg and 63kg categories].
There are two possible scenarios:
If the ad-hoc panel remains in power
If the three-member ad-hoc committee remains in power, then we have a straight roadmap: a final trial will be held either at the end of May or early June to determine who will make India's wrestling contingent for the Paris Olympics.
A point to be noted here is that a quota won by a wrestler does not belong to the athlete and belongs to the county. For example: Antim Panghal has sealed a quota in the women's 53kg category, but that does not guarantee her a spot on the Olympic squad. She will take on the winner of the proposed trials and the victor of that bout will go to Paris.
So as per the ad-hoc committee's plan, the top-four athletes in these trials will be allowed to compete in the final Olympic trial. By that logic, Bajrang has another chance as he lost in the semifinals and finished in the top-4. For Ravi, however, it's a little tricky since the Nordic system was used in the 57kg category at the trials.
If the elected WFI body returns to power
This is where the uncertainty kicks in. UWW sent a stern letter to the WFI last week emphasizing the fact that it was the duty of the national federations to select and announce their teams for major events. While the ad-hoc panel and Sanjay Singh's elected body have agreed to join hands, for now, this agreement could change anytime.
If the Singh-led panel comes back in power, it is unclear on what selection policies they will employ. The current selection guidelines available on the WFI's website say "...the Selection Committee of WFI will have the discretion to hold a trial for participation in the Olympic Games. However, it will not be compulsory that all the quota earned Wrestlers will be asked to appear in trials. And if the trials are held, the quota winner will not appear in the initial trials in that particular category, rather he/she will compete with the winner of those trials. And if the quota-winner loses the bout to the trials' winner, he/she will be given one more opportunity to keep the quota through a second bout against the same opponent."
There are two aspects to note in the selection policy: the selection committee has the authority to decide that a trial is not needed and the quota-winner will be added to the Indian contingent. Or, they could hold trials. They also have the power to decide who appears in these trials.
However, these guidelines were framed by the previous WFI administration and hence they could even be re-worked now. That just leaves us with more uncertainty.