Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) president Sanjay Singh on Wednesday criticised the US Embassy decision denying visa to nine Indian wrestlers claiming that at least five of the affected athletes could have won gold medals at the U23 World Wrestling Championships in Las Vegas which began on 12 October.
'At least 5 would have won gold'
Speaking to the Free Press Journal, Singh said the Wrestling federation had contacted both the US Embassy and United World Wrestling (UWW) to resolve the visa issue but to no avail. The Five Greco-Roman and four women wrestlers were denied visas for being under 20 years of age and unemployed.
"Visas of 9 wrestlers have been rejected. It is a fault of the US Embassy. I had spoken to them and also the United World Wrestling regarding the same. It is unfortunate," Sanjay Singh, president of Wrestling Federation of India told Free Press Journal.
The WFI chief also questioned the apparent emphasis on employment status, pointing out that wrestling was the full-time occupation of the young athletes. "These are 20 year olds. Wrestling is their full time job. I am certain atleast 5 of them would have won the gold," he added.
Why were Indian wrestlers denied visas?
Eight of the nine were aged 20 or below, while one wrestler who had recently joined the Indian Railways was reportedly unable to provide the requested salary details. The refusals came amid a broader tightening of US immigration and visa policies, including expanded screening and vetting requirements for certain visa categories and restrictions affecting nationals of 39 countries.
