Haryana complete clean sweep at U-23 National Wrestling Championship

Haryana dominated the 2026 U-23 National Wrestling Championship by winning the overall team titles in Men's Freestyle, Greco-Roman and Women's Wrestling. Services Sports Control Board and Maharashtra finished runners-up, while several young wrestlers impressed with gold medal-winning performances

Hyderabad: Powerhouse Haryana established undisputed supremacy on home turf, completing a clean sweep of the overall team championships across all three formats – Men’s Freestyle, Greco-Roman and Women’s Wrestling – at the 2026 U-23 National Wrestling Championship, which concluded at MDU Rohtak.

The three-day elite domestic event witnessed intense competition among the country’s finest young wrestlers.

---

The host state dominated the tournament standings, topping the Men’s Freestyle division with 200 points, the Greco-Roman category with 195 points and the Women’s Wrestling section with 183 points. Services Sports Control Board (SSCB) put up a strong challenge to finish runners-up in both Men’s Freestyle (138 points) and Greco-Roman (165 points), while Maharashtra claimed the second spot in the women’s team standings with 160 points.

Lauding the performance of the young athletes, Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) President Sanjay Kumar Singh said, “The exceptional standard of competition witnessed here highlights the incredible depth in our U-23 ranks. Haryana’s clean sweep across all three styles underscores their robust training pipeline, while institutions like Services and various state teams continue to push the benchmarks higher. The federation is fully committed to providing these top performers with elite international exposure as they transition to the senior level.”

In the Men’s Freestyle category, Haryana and SSCB athletes shared the major honours alongside strong performances from Punjab. In the 74 kg weight category, Narender of SSCB won the gold medal after defeating Himachal Pradesh’s Naveen, while Rishab Jakhar of Punjab and Yash of Haryana claimed the bronze medals.

The 79 kg title went to Haryana’s Paras, who overcame a tough challenge from SSCB’s Yash, while Priyanshu of Delhi and Vishal Kumar of Punjab claimed the bronze medals. Sahil Dalal asserted SSCB’s strength in the 86 kg class by winning the gold medal against Haryana’s Himanshu Antil, with Sumit Thakur of Himachal Pradesh and Anuj Tomar of Uttar Pradesh securing the bronze medals.

In the heavyweight 125 kg division, Jaspooran Singh of Punjab won the gold medal after defeating Uttar Pradesh’s Lakshay Kumar, while Rohit of Haryana and Rishabh Singh of Rajasthan claimed the bronze medals.