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Indian female Wrestlers Vinesh Phogat, Anshu Malik and Reetika clinched their quota spots for the upcoming Paris Olympics at the Asian Olympic Qualifier in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan on Saturday. It was a successful day for India as three out of the five competitors booked their spots for the Summer Games later this year with Mansi and Nisha suffering losses. So far, four Indian women have qualified as Antim Panghal (53kg) bagged her quota place.
Phogat took down Kazakhstan’s Laura Ganikyzy 10-0 in the women’s 50kg semifinal at the Asian Olympic qualifiers. The Commonwealth and Asian Games champion clinched the win in 4:18 minutes thanks to technical superiority. Phogat will now face Aktenge Keunimjaeva of Uzbekistan, who beat Chinese Taipei's Meng Hsuan Hsieh 4-2.
After Vinesh Phogat, Anshu Malik was in action and clinched her Olympic quota after defeating Laylokhon Sobirova of Uzbekistan. Malik registered an 11-0 win in the Women's Freestyle 57kg category semis at the Asian Olympic Qualifiers 2024.
India's third competitor, Mansi Ahlawat put in an incredible effort against a much stronger wrestler, Mun Hyon-gyong and suffered a 0-6 in the 67kg category. But ensuring a solid end for the Indian contingent, Reetika beat South Korea’s Eunju Hwang 10-0, Mongolia’s Worlds silver medallist Enkh Amar 11-0 and China’s Asian Games bronze medallist Juan Wang 9-6 in the group stage.
