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Wrestling
in India is said to be amongst the most ancient sports whose past is enriched
with glory. Wrestling in modern India is concentrated in the Indian states
like Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Punjab and Haryana. The game of wrestling
commenced its journey in India several centuries ago, during the middles
ages. Even in the Olympic Games, wrestling is considered to be one of the
most significant games. In 708 BC, this game was included in the Olympics. Sakshi Malik, Sushil Kumar Solanki, Udey Chand, Satender Dagar, Gobar Guha, Jatindra Charan Goho, Ambika Charan
Guha, Khashaba
Dadasaheb Jadhav, Yogeshwar Dutt, Ghulam Muhammad, Dara Singh and Geeta Phogat are considered as the
all time famous and popular wrestlers in India from Independence.
In India, wrestling is also known as 'Malla-Yudhha'. Some forms of Mallayuddha were practiced in India even before the invasion of the Aryans. The famousIndian epic, Mahabharata has numerous references of the game of wrestling in the country. Bhima, an important character in Mahabharata is believed to be a great wrestler. Karna, Jarasandha and Duryodhana were the other great wrestlers mentioned in this epic. Ramayana has also asserted about the activity of wrestling and Hanuman has been described as a talented wrestler here. Malla Purana, which dates back to the thirteenth century mentions about a group of Gujarati Brahmin wrestlers who were known as 'Jyesthimallas'. Wrestling in India, during the ancient times, used to get regular patronage from the emperors and kings of the nation. The kings of pre-independent India nurtured wrestling to a large extent. During the British rule, wrestling in India got another big push, as the British rulers included the game into the military practise. The British military armies, including Indian soldiers got attracted to wrestling, very much. Wrestling in India continued to increase its popularity till the modern days and India was considered among the top 10 countries in wrestling till the 1960s. India also hosted the World Wrestling Championship in New Delhi in 1967. |
Wrestling
in India can be divided into two main categories like 'Malla Krida'
and 'Malla-Yuddha'. While Malla Krida is the sports form of the game,
Malla-Yuddha is the battle version of wrestling. To know more read:
