Olympic qualifiers berth depends on performance of wrestlers at Asian Championships: WFI president

Wrestling Federation of India's (WFI) president Brij Bushan Sharan Singh on Friday made it clear that he can make wrestlers undergo trials again if their performance is not up to the mark in the upcoming Asian Championships and Ranking Series.

He said that winning the trials here is not enough and the wrestlers will need to prove their mettle at the Asian Championships.

"Without playing the trial, no one can go ahead. I would like to make it clear, that if three wrestlers' performance is not up to the mark in different weight categories, I can make them undergo trials again," Singh told reporters.

"Whose ever performance is not good at Asian Championship and ranking series, I won't send them for Olympic qualifiers, if the situation demands, I will make wrestlers undergo trials again," he added.

"If a wrestler does not win any match in Asian Championships, how can we send them for Olympic qualifiers? We have a selection committee, we will deliberate on it and then we will decide," Singh further said.

Jitender outclassed Amit Dhankar in the 74kg category in the trials in freestyle wrestling. With this, it has made Sushil Kumar's path ahead a bit difficult.

Two-time Olympic medallist Kumar had decided to skip the trials after getting injured. He had requested the federation to postpone the trials, but his request was not heard.

"Amit is a strong wrestler, he has a strong defence and he is good at attacking as well. My coach told me to go in with a set mindset, I am not aware of the rules as of now. I hope to perform hard and try to win as much as possible. Our work is to wrestle and win matches. Rest, the federation has to decide," Jitender told ANI.

With Kumar's absence in the trials, it is still not known if Jitender is the first choice for the two remaining Olympic qualifying tournaments.