After displaying his talent by becoming the Asian champion in 70kg, freestyle wrestler Abhimanyou Mandwal is keen to be consistent like his former roommate, Olympic silver medallist Ravi Dahiya, and shine in bigger competitions.

Abhimanyou, who had become the Asian under-23 champion two years ago and recently bagged bronze in the Asian championships, had suffered a major ankle injury before bouncing back.

“I broke my left ankle and I couldn’t compete in the 2024 and 2025 World championships. It was really bad. I did my rehabilitation at JSW Sports and I prepared myself mentally. It was challenging, it took me a year to recover,” Abhimanyou told The Hindu.

Abhimanyou, hailing from a family of wrestlers at the Shamsukh village in the Hisar district in Haryana, fought back with determination. “I won gold in the National championships last year and the Zagreb Open Ranking Series in February. In the Pro Wrestling League, I learnt about my weaknesses and how much power and stamina I needed [to succeed].

“The Asian championships was good. The semifinal bout (against multiple Worlds medallist and last year’s Asian champion Ernazar Akmataliev of Mongolia) was the toughest. I considered myself better than him.”

The 24-year-old Abhimanyou, who was enrolled at the famous Chhatrasal Stadium in Delhi by his uncle in 2012, acknowledged the influence of coaches, including current coach Lalit Kumar, and his role model Ravi in his growth. “They take good care of young wrestlers. I lived with Ravi before he shifted to a new house. I learnt a lot from him. I liked his consistency and mindset.”

Looking to switch to an Olympic weight category — preferably 74kg — Abhimanyou understands that he needs to decide wisely as the World championships and Asian Games are scheduled close to each other later this year. “The World championships has 70kg while the Asian Games has 74kg. I’ll have to keep all factors in mind when I plan. The main goal is the Olympics (2028) and there’s enough time to prepare for it,” said Abhimanyou.