Valiant Reetika Hooda makes her mark despite bowing out of medal contention at Paris Olympics | Paris Olympics 2024 News

PARIS: Indian women wrestlers have made waves in the lower weight categories for years, with the likes of the Phogat sisters and Sakshi Malik making their mark. There are very few who compete in the heavyweight division and make the heads turn. Reetika Hooda, the 22-year-old from Rohtak, is one from the rare breed.
Reetika has followed in the footsteps of Kiran Bishnoi, who won bronze at the Asian Games in Hangzhou in 2022.Reetika is seen as a pioneer in women’s wrestling in the country as she is the first Indian female wrestler to qualify for the Olympics in the heavyweight category. She also became the first Indian female U-23 world wrestling champion in the 76kg class after beating Kennedy Blades (USA) in the final last year.
Reetika’s journey in the Games ended on Saturday as Aiperi Medet of Kyrgyzstan, who had beaten Reetika in the quarterfinal, lost to Kennedy Blades of USA in the semis. If Medet had reached the final, Reetika would have had a shot at the bronze medal on Sunday through the repechage round. Still, Reetika showed why she is rated so high.
She met Hungary’s Nagy Bernadett first, in the round of 16, and won it with ease. Reetika took some time to assess her opponent, the 2022 European champion in this weight category, and went into the attack right away. She was up 4-0 in the first period. She conceded two points then, the only time she looked a little vulnerable. After that the points kept coming in India’s corner. 6-2, 10-2, 12-2.
With 29 seconds to go, the referee stopped the contest. The next one, the quarterfinal, was seriously tough. The draw had not been kind to her. She was up against the top seed here. She fought hard, with a lot of courage and even took the lead but conceded that due to passive play. The Kyrgyz girl won on countback.
Reetika was cautious when it all began. She had decided to be defensive and not give an opening to her rival. In the initial minutes, Medet went for a dangerous double-leg attack. Reetika was vulnerable but she held firm, using all her might to keep a firm grip on her rival. At the three-minute break the deadlock had not been broken.
Medet was waiting for an opening, having realised that Reetika was holding firm. The referee kept telling both to attack. Soon, Reetika won her point. Medet was penalised for passivity. This was the time when Reetika could have probably attacked more. She played safe, not wanting to let her guard down and was penalised for passivity. 1-1. Medet was ahead on countback.
In the last minute, Reetika tried to push Medet out of the ring to get that one crucial point. The Kyrgyz managed to turn around at the edge. The chance was gone. The upset the Indians had hoped for did not happen. The Indian women’s national coach Virender Singh Dahiya was upset at how it had turned out.
“She probably had been told that she should be cautious as she was up against the top seed. You don’t win by defending against such a wrestler. Reetika was so good. She did not leave the grip, did not give her rival any room to attack. But after having won the point, she should have attacked,” he said.