In Pontevedra, SpainAman’s dominating run to win a historic gold medal saw four consecutive one-sided wins. Before defeating Turkey’s Ahmed Duman 12-4 in the final, Aman had won his semifinal 10-5, quarterfinal 13-2 and pre-quarterfinal 11-0.
The celebration, though, was a subdued one — even after the gold-medal win. The reason has a background story.
When Aman was just 10 or 11, he lost his mother to an illness. A year later, his father too succumbed to a prolonged illness. At the Chhatrasal Stadium in Delhi, Aman, who had not even entered his teens yet, had only one thing to look up to. That was wrestling, and he did that in total earnest. Nothing else interests him.
The coaches at the Chhatrasal Stadium pitched in to help him with his expenses, even got him a couple of local sponsors for stipend. The food at the stadium mess was made free for Aman. All this was over and above what Aman’s uncle and aunt would pitch in with for his care and training.
Just to make your Sunday better, India!Meet 🇮🇳’s first U23 world champ – AMAN#WrestlePontevedra… https://t.co/dcHIS7Wpjq
— United World Wrestling (@wrestling) 1666537595000
“My uncle and aunt looked after me like my father and mother,” said Aman, during his brief interaction with TimesofIndia.com upon his return from Spain.
Since then, Lalit, the chief coach at the Chhatrasal Stadium, is someone who has seen Aman grow and has even travelled with Aman on international tours.
“In 2015, when he came to us he was just 12 or 13. From that time we started working with him,” said Lalit, when he answered TimesofIndia.com’s phone call.
“In 2017, he played the inter-zone school competition and won a medal. Then he won consecutive gold medals at the 2018 and 2019 school nationals.”
Aman went on to become the 48kg cadet world champion in 2021. After graduating to the 57kg weight division, he became the U-23 Asian champion in June this year, followed by a bronze at the junior Asian Championships in July.
“His improvement has been very promising. He wants to learn fast and thus is very hard working…At the National Games and the U-23 World Championships, he won one-sided against wrestlers who used to beat him,” Lalit further told TimesofIndia.com.
(Twitter Photo)
The studious mind of Aman is highlighted by a moment in the U-23 World Championships final, when he looked to be in trouble.
During the second period, his Turkish opponent Daman looked to have a firm hold of Aman’s legs, ready to turn that into a ‘fitele’ and roll Aman over the mat. A ‘fitele’ is a move in wrestling where one grappler catches hold of their opponent’s ankles and twirls them around in quick succession to score quick points. But the Indian teenager remembered what his coach Lalit had told him to do in such situations, while preparing for the championships in Delhi.
“We had trained him particularly for that situation before he left for Spain. It helped him. Despite getting caught, he was able to resist and then break free,” Lalit recalled.
Aman’s run and consistent success might show him as a possible candidate to be on the flight to 2024 Paris Olympics, but that appears to be a thought that is somewhat far-fetched. For the time being, the 57kg freestyle category is ruled by Ravi in India.
The two may have similar speed-based techniques of tiring the opponent out and then dominating in the second and third periods of the bout, but Ravi’s strength and experience keeps him a few steps higher on the ladder.
“Ravi and Aman may have a similar frame and work ethic, but there is a difference in strength. Basically the difference between a senior and a junior,” said Lalit. “Endurance is Aman’s strength, he doesn’t get tired easily. He forces the opponent to try and match his speed, never breaks that momentum…fast fast fast…attack, dodge, attack, dodge. So the opponent tires.
“But Aman is just 19, Ravi is 24, and has a lot more experience. That matters.”
🇮🇳 register their best-ever performance in the U23 World #Wrestling Championship since its inception in 2017🥇- Am… https://t.co/gTrawzMlux
– SAI Media (@Media_SAI) 1666463327000
However, Aman doesn’t completely rule out the possibility of edging out Ravi if it comes to trials for a place in the Olympic squad two years down the line. The teenager insists, though, that it doesn’t turn his and Ravi’s relationship into a rivalry.
“Kushti apni jagah hai, bhaichara apni jagah (wrestling and brotherhood are two different things). There is no rivalry,” Aman told TimesofIndia.com.
But should the 57kg Olympic spot boil down to selection trials, Aman would want to put his best foot forward and give Ravi a run for his money. And changing weight categories is not an option Aman is considering at all.
“I won’t change my weight category. I will work hard, whoever is better will go,” said Aman. “But he (Ravi) doesn’t think along those lines. He never brings that into our relationship; in fact, he looks after me,” Aman further said.
Upon Aman’s return from Spain, there was a small welcome ceremony at the Chhatrasal Stadium, where Ravi, Lalit and other members of the akhara congratulated the youngster.
(Ravi Dahiya, fifth from right, felicitated Aman upon his return home from Spain – Photo: TOI arrangement)
“We (at the Chhatrasal Stadium akhara) had Deepak Punia as the junior world champion, Sushil (Kumar) pehalwan was senior world champion. But we didn’t have an Under-23 champion. Aman filled that void,” said Lalit.
