Antim Panghal wins World bronze and quota for Paris Olympics

Young Indian wrestler Antim Panghal's superb campaign at the World Championships culminated with a bronze medal, a performance that also earned the country a 53kg quota for the Paris Olympics. The 19-year-old Panghal became only the sixth Indian woman to win a bronze medal at the Worlds with her victory over Sweden's Emma Jonna Denise Malmgren, the two-time European champion.The high-scoring bout (16-6) ended with a technical superiority win for the Indian, who became the first Indian wrestler -- male or female -- to lock a quota for the next year's Games.Panghal raced to a 5-0 lead after beginning with a quick push-out point. Malmgren fought with a take-down move and had the Indian in her grip but somehow the Indian wriggled out.
A successful double-leg attack from the Swede reduced the deficit further and another two-pointer meant that Malmgren had grabbed slender 6-5 lead with six straight points. Just before the end of the first period, Panghal earned a point on counter-attack to make it 6-6. The second period belonged to Panghal as the two-time U20 champion pulled off move after move to consolidate her lead. The Swede resisted hard but the powerful Panghal employed leg-lace to quickly widen the gap and eventually won the bout by technical superiority. With Panghal’s bronze medal win, Indian women’s campaign closed in the Championships. This is the only medal India has won so far.The Indians are competing under the UWW flag since national federation WFI is suspended for not conducting elections on time.