World Wrestling Championships 2026: Neelam Sirohi and Kajal Dhochak Win Silver Medals

India’s Neelam Sirohi and Kajal Dhochak won historic silver medals at the World Wrestling Championships 2026 in Astana, Kazakhstan, on 28th October, 2026. Both lost their final bouts but made history for Indian women’s wrestling.

Neelam Sirohi Finished Runner-Up in the Women’s 50kg Category

The 26-year-old began with a 6-0 win over Belarus’s Natallia Varakina. In the quarter-final, top seed Elizaveta Smirnova of Russia withdrew due to injury, which sent Neelam ahead. She then beat Kazakhstan’s Zeinep Bayanova 7-3 in the semi-final.

Japan’s Yui Susaki won the gold by defeating Neelam Sirohi

Japan’s Yui Susaki, a former Olympic champion and the defending champion, won the gold bout by fall. Susaki has stayed unbeaten internationally since her loss to India’s Vinesh Phogat at the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Kajal Dhochak wins the silver in the Women’s 76kg Division

Kajal is only 18 and a two-time U20 world champion. She won by fall in her opening bout, then beat Mongolia’s Enkh-Amaryn Davaanasan 9-2. In the semi-final, she came back from 1-7 down to beat Kyrgyzstan’s Aiperi Medet Kyzy 10-7. In the final, she lost to Ukraine’s Anastasiya Alpyeyeva, the European champion.

Anshu Malik, in 2021, is the only other Indian Woman to win silver at the World Wrestling Championships

Before this edition, Anshu Malik was the only Indian woman to win a World Championships silver, in the 57kg category at Oslo in 2021. She was also the only Indian woman to have reached a final. Two Indian women reaching finals in one edition is a breakthrough.

World Wrestling Championships 2026 India Medal Tally

• Silver: Neelam Sirohi (50kg) and Kajal Dhochak (76kg)
• Rajnita (65kg): Lost 2-6 to Japan’s Nana Ikehata in the repechage and missed the bronze bout.
• Srishti (68kg) and Tanu Sharma (72kg): Reached the repechage rounds and are still in contention.
• Nishu (53kg) and Neha (62kg): Eliminated.
• Greco-Roman: Lalit Sehrawat (55kg) lost the bronze medal bout to Kazakhstan’s Iskhar Kurbayev. He is the first Indian in 13 years to contest a Greco-Roman medal bout at the World Championships.