Double international championships bronze medalist Vinesh Phogat will go back to aggressive wrestling this week when she takes the mat on the Polyak Imre and Varga Janos Memorial event in Budapest beginning Thursday. The fourth and remaining rating collection of the 12 months will mark a comeback after 10 months.
Having neglected the Zagreb (February), Alexandria (February) and Bishkek (June) rating collection in addition to the Asian Championships this 12 months, this match assumes nice importance for Phogat as she can be eyeing the World Championships later this 12 months to qualify for her 3rd successive Olympics. Phogat, who typically competes within the 53kg class, will participate within the 55kg in Budapest.
So, the go back to festival may not be easy. Experts consider that the 36-day sit-in protest that ended on May 28 would have taken a bodily and psychological toll at the most sensible wrestlers. Sakshi Malik, Bajrang Punia, Sangeeta Phogat, Satyavart Kadiyan and Jitender Kumar are the others who led the protest challenging the arrest of former Wrestling Federation of India president, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, over sexual harassment.
The wrestlers are conscious about their reduced powers. “As of now, my wrestling is as good as that of a young upstart. At this stage, even a rookie can beat us. The dedication you need in this sport is beyond imagination,” Punia, Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist, instructed HT within the ultimate levels of the sit-in in opposition to the top of May. “We don’t get the diet. We can’t rest. There is no sleep. Sometimes, I forget which day of the week it is. In wrestling, a day of missed training sets you back by a week,” he had said. By that yardstick the wrestlers, who missed at least 45 days of training from their second sit-in protest on April 23 till the truce at Union sports minister Anurag Thakur’s residence on June 7.
His assessment finds endorsement. “He is a four-time World Championships medalist and understands his body. It will be very tough for these wrestlers to get back to the level they were at,” Lalit Kumar, chief wrestling coach at Delhi’s Chhatrasal Stadium, who trains Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Ravi Dahiya, said.
“Such a long gap in wrestling is unheard of. Endurance is the first to go, then goes your strength and power, and with that confidence. For wrestlers, weight maintenance is non-negotiable. All these wrestlers would have gained fat and lost muscle. And we’re not talking about slowing reflexes, loss of muscle memory, and waning technical prowess yet. It will take them at least 45 days to be able to play 2-3 bouts in a day,” added Kumar.
Sports science expert Aradhna Sharma, who has worked at the Army Sports Institute’s sports science department as an expert faculty for close to a decade, said the wrestlers will be experiencing the effect of long-term detraining. “The impact of such a long absence from training will play out in the form of loss of endurance and muscle strength. Endurance dips faster than muscle depletion. The cardiovascular strength, aerobic fitness, and VO2 max levels—all of which translate into endurance—fall after two weeks of non-training. Muscle mass and strength start to go down after three weeks. The wrestlers’ protest lasted roughly five weeks, so one can imagine the state of their bodies,” Sharma said.
The wrestlers spent nights on the pavement at Jantar Mantar during their protest. Punia said they slept for no more than four hours “on a good day”. “Even when I sleep, my mind is not at rest. I slip into sleep thinking about the next day. There are lawyers to deal with, supporters to talk to, media to handle. There’s so much pressure on us,” he had said.
An elite athlete, Sharma said, needs at least nine hours of quality sleep daily. “It varies from person to person, but nine hours is an ideal average. Lack of sleep slows down recovery, which kicks in muscle fatigue. The wrestlers would be feeling it now,” she said.
“Muscles need to be conditioned daily because it is very easy for the body to slip into a deconditioned state. It will take them at least 2-3 weeks to get back to the conditioned state. It is important that they hit the mat only after they are properly conditioned, to avoid injuries,” mentioned Sharma.
The psychological problem will probably be no much less. “Their self assurance will unquestionably be rather low given their frame will most likely be in its worst form. It is hard to evaluate their psychological state, however it’s protected to mention their morale has taken a success,” mentioned a high-performance sports activities psychologist who did not want to be known.