Father’s Wisdom Helps Teenage Wrestler Neha Sharma Stay Injury-Free on Path to Glory

Add as a preferred source on Google

A Sanskrit school teacher, Satbir Singh, of the Delhi Education Department relied on his wisdom to successfully keep his teenage wrestler daughter, Neha Sharma, injury-free.

The 19-year-old international wrestler from Delhi will begin her 2025 season with the Senior Asian Championship, scheduled to be held from March 25 in Amman, Jordan. She will compete in the women's 57kg freestyle category. Staying healthy on and off the mat, Neha has won back-to-back medals at the U23 World Championships and several domestic age-group medals.

"We believed in natural growth and progressive body weight gain according to age. Hence, Neha never faced the challenge of drastically reducing weight before competitions," her father explained. "We avoided the common practice of frequent weight-cutting, as we felt it wasn't a healthy approach to athletic development."

Neha competed in the below 40kg category in the U14 age group in 2018 and won bronze at the National School Games. As she grew, her natural physical development led to weight gain, prompting her transition to new categories. At the junior level, she competed in the 50kg and 55kg weight classes. Currently, she competes in the 57kg category.

Her father attributes Neha's success to holistic development. "She was quick to adapt to new techniques in each weight category she competed in," he said. "But for the next two seasons, she will remain in the 57kg category, which is an Olympic weight class."

For context, India's star wrestler Vinesh Phogat was disqualified from the women's 50kg freestyle final at the 2024 Paris Olympic Games after being overweight at the time of weigh-in before her gold medal bout.

Since Delhi lacks quality sparring partners for female wrestlers, Neha's family relocated to Rohtak in 2023 to access better facilities. They now rent accommodation near the wrestling stadium. While Satbir Singh commutes from Rohtak to Delhi for work on all weekdays, he is satisfied with Neha's progress under the guidance of wrestling coach Mandeep Singh.

"Our main focus this year will be the 2025 World Championships in September," her father said.

At the U23 World Wrestling Championships in 2023, Neha won silver in the women's 55kg freestyle event. At the 2024 edition of the U23 World Championships, she had to settle for bronze.

Neha's journey from school competitions to the elite level also reflects the broader picture of Indian sports. There is no structured talent scouting system in an Olympic discipline like wrestling. Parents play a crucial role in encouraging and financially supporting their children.

Neha was introduced to the sport when she accompanied her cousin brothers to the wrestling center and started grappling. "My brothers were my sparring partners during my formative years of training," she recalled.

Neha's mother takes care of logistics, ensuring her daughter has healthy meals after training.

"Achieving excellence in sports is all about having a good coaching system and financial support," her father added.