Most people are familiar with the Geeta Phogat story – as seen through the lens of Dangal. But let’s switch from reel to real, and talk about the proud achievements of the Phogat sisters.
Born on 15 December 1988, Geeta Phogat comes from a strong tradition of wrestling. Her father Mahavir Singh Phogat was raised (much like his daughters) in a small rural village in Haryana – a place where social inequalities and prejudice against women are still common. But a former wrestler himself, Mahavir Singh Phogat took the onus of doing right by his daughters. Mahavir has four daughters – Geeta, Babita, Ritu and Sangeeta. He also raised Priyanka and Vinesh Phogat after the loss of their father (his brother). In a bid to bring laurels to the country, he started training his daughters at an early age – a bold decision that would eventually pay dividends.
At the Commonwealth Games 2010, Geeta Phogat brought home India’s first ever Gold medal in wrestling. She secured the medal with an impressive 1-0, 7-0 win over her Australian opponent Emily Bensted in the 55kg freestyle final. At the same event, Babita won Silver in her respective weight category. Since then, there has been no looking back for either of them.
At the Commonwealth Games 2014, Babita and Vinesh won Gold medals in their finals. Moreover, Priyanka has won Silver at the Asian Championships, Ritu has won Gold at the National Championships and Sangeeta has furthered the medal tally in International championships.
The Phogat patriarch and sisters have done India immensely proud. Collectively, they have broken barriers and pushed the boundaries for women achievers in India. And we hope that their long and proud tradition of women’s wrestling lives on!
– Varun Kumar | SpreadSports
