Paris-bound Antim Panghal Wants To Emulate Sushil Kumar's Olympics Wrestling Feat

Vinesh Phogat, Indian wrestling's poster girl, has competition. Nineteen-year-old Antim Panghal, the nation's first-ever under-20 world wrestling champion, wants to set the bar so high that "no one (in India) can ever break my records." Both Vinesh and Antim are from Haryana but their commonality ends there. In a fresh episode of the 'Fit India Champions Podcast' released on Saturday, Antim talks about her resolution to 'not touch jalebis at least for a year' and why she wants to emulate her idol, the two-time Olympic medalist, Sushil Kumar.

"I have never met Sushil Pehelwan but I was blown away when I heard his work ethic and how hard he prepared to win an Olympic medal. I really want to be like him and if he was the gold standard in men's wrestling, I want people to say that Antim is the ultimate in women's," said a candid 19-year-old to podcast host Ekta Vishnoi.

The 'Fit India Champions' podcast series is aimed at spreading the message on wellness through conversations with athletes and health influencers. The 10-episode series is in partnership with GOQii, a major stakeholder in the fitness sector that proactively manages health through its digital and multimedia technology.

Antim, who has qualified for the Paris Olympics 2024 in the women's 53 kg category, revealed that choosing wrestling as a career was the best decision she made in life. Coming from a family where elder sister (Sarita) and father Ram Niwas were kabaddi players, Antim decided to take up wrestling because "it's an individual sport and selection in any national squad depended only on hard work and nothing else. I saw how sad my sister would be when she was not selected."

Antim's career as a wrestler started at the local dangals (wrestling