FPJ Exclusive: Aman Sehrawat Reflects On Olympic Highs, World Championship Setback And LA 2028 Gold Dream

Mumbai, Jan 12: Aman Sehrawat has seen great highs and steep lows in the last two years ever since he created history by clinching the Olympic bronze medal in the men's 57kg category at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

It was a stratospheric high when a then 21 years and 24 days old Aman bagged the medal, becoming the youngest Indian to win an individual Olympic medal.

From there to the low of being suspended at the World Championships in Zagreb, Croatia, by the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) for exceeding the 57kg weight limit and then the suspension getting revoked a month later, the young wrestler has been on a roller-coaster ride of emotions.

Pro Wrestling League association

Aman is representing Tiigers of Mumbai Dangals, owned by Aspect Sports, in the Pro Wrestling League (PWL) commencing on January 15 in Noida.

The Haryana wrestler was in good spirits talking about his team Tiigers of Mumbai Dangals and his association with the PWL, where he is the domestic wrestler with the top base price of Rs 18 lakh at the auction.

"I'm feeling very good and I'll give my 100 per cent and take the team along with me and we hope to win the title as well.

"I'm feeling great being part of this team. We are being looked after very well by the team and no complaints at all. There is no pressure of anything whatsoever. It's a very free and relaxed environment that we have here at the team. I always look at giving my 100 per cent in practice. They always ask me if I need anything and my needs are taken care of and hence I play tension-free," he added.

Targeting gold at Los Angeles Olympics

Aman was very ambitious when it came to his plans and targets for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, stating he was targeting the yellow metal.

"I'm preparing and training very hard for the Olympics. I'm definitely going for gold. I'm not thinking of a medal but I'm aiming for a gold medal," he added.

Learning from suspension setback

Talking about the disappointment of suspension at the World Championships, Aman felt it was a learning experience.

"Whatever happened was wrong in whichever way I look at it. The learning is to avoid such situations in the competitions in the future and be alert with regard to the rules. So, in a way, whatever happened has made me more aware of things. So I've become stronger now after that episode," he added.

Aman stated all wrestlers are aware of weight limits while getting into competition, but there are always contingencies and unforeseen circumstances that one is never prepared for.

"This issue is something that every wrestler is aware of before going into any bout, but what happens is when there are some health-related issues or illness, it is not in our hands beyond a point. These things happen as a one-off but otherwise wrestlers are very professional and alert to let something of this nature happen. The players suffer the most when something of this sort happens, so we try to make sure such incidents don't happen again."

National gold and future hopes

The Olympic medallist had won a gold medal at the National Championships recently and was gung-ho with his performance.

"Yes, I bounced back well at the National Championships. I worked on my body and my game and ironed out the chinks in my armour and that fetched me the gold. I worked on my shortcomings and the results came out well as most of the bouts were one-sided," he added.

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He also felt that PWL will definitely play a role in benefiting Indian wrestling in the long run.

"We were hoping that there would be a league like this which would help people. The league will surely go a long way in supporting Indian wrestling. I'm also looking to do well in the upcoming competitions like the Asian Games later this year."