A look at Chhatrasal, the breeding ground for Indian wrestling talent

Wrestling has been a must-win sport for India at the Olympics for the last 16 years. The sport has produced medals for the country in every edition of the Games since 2008. In the last five editions of the Olympics, wrestling has brought India seven medals. Sushil Kumar (bronze in 2008 and silver in 2012), Yogeshwar Dutt (bronze in 2012), Sakshi Malik (bronze in 2016), Ravi Kumar Dahiya (silver in 2021), Bajrang Punia (bronze in 2021) and Aman Sehrawat (bronze in 2024) are the names that won the country’s awards in the sport’s biggest extravaganza.

It is interesting to note that all the athletes mentioned above, excluding Sakshi, are products of Chhatrasal – a place that has been a breeding ground for Indian wrestling talent.

It was in 1988 when former Indian wrestler Satpal Singh with other coaches Ramphal Mann aka Guru Ramphal and Pradeep Sharma started the akhada in the Chhatrasal Stadium premises, he stated India Times in a report.

Satpal himself shone in the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games with several medals, but failed to finish on the podium at the Olympics in his two appearances in 1972 and 1980. The nullification of the Games medal in his illustrious career was something that propelled Satpal to start the Chhatrasal Akhada.

“Ek mann mein tees thi (There was a pain in my heart about not winning an Olympic medal). That’s why I started akhada at Chhatrasal Stadium. I wanted to produce Olympic medalists for the country,” Satpal told TOI. “We have now produced not one, but six Olympic medalists.”

Just four years after starting akhada, Satpal realized the need for a mat other than the specially designed earth floors that are very famous in Indian wrestling.

Fast forward to 2024, the akhada has all the modern equipment and facilities needed for fighters to become world champions. After winning the bronze medal at the Paris Olympics, Aman carried forward the rich legacy of Chhatarsal.