Aman Sehrawat bags gold in Budapest Ranking Series as India adds another wrestling medal

Budapest (Hungary): Olympic bronze medallist Aman Sehrawat continued his rich vein of form by winning the gold medal in the men's 57kg freestyle event at the Polyák Imre, Varga János & Kozma István Memorial Senior Ranking Tournament 2026 in Budapest on Wednesday.

The 22-year-old Indian wrestler produced a dominant display in the final, defeating Georgia's Roberti Dingashvili 13-3 by technical superiority to secure the top spot on the podium.

Aman, who became India's youngest individual Olympic medallist after claiming bronze at the Paris Olympics and is also the country's first U23 World Wrestling champion, added another major international title to his growing list of achievements.

India also celebrated success in the men's 61kg freestyle category, where Deepak claimed the bronze medal after edging Azerbaijan's Nuraddin Novruzov 9-8 in a thrilling third-place playoff.

The Indian contingent remains in contention for more medals in the 65kg freestyle division. Kumar Mohit will face Kazakhstan's Nachyn Kuular in a bronze medal bout, while Vishal Kaliraman is set to take on Kazakhstan's Ossumzhan Dastanbek in another third-place playoff.

Competition will continue on Thursday with the remaining men's freestyle categories—79kg, 92kg, 97kg and 125kg—while India's women's wrestling campaign will also begin with the opening rounds in the 50kg and 55kg weight classes.

Elsewhere, France's Rakhim Magamadov booked his place in the 86kg final after a commanding 10-0 victory over China's Nan Cao, although he appeared to suffer an injury at the end of the bout. If declared fit, he will meet Georgia's Vladimeri Gamkrelidze in the gold medal match.

In the 74kg category, China's Feng Lu advanced to the final after securing a dramatic 2-2 criteria win over Hungary's Murad Kuramagomedov with a late step-out point. He will face Kazakhstan's former 70kg world champion Nurkozha Kaipanov, who defeated Turkey's Muhammed Besir 6-4 in a hard-fought semifinal.

India's medal winners so far:

• Gold (57kg Freestyle): Aman Sehrawat – defeated Roberti Dingashvili (Georgia) 13-3.
• Bronze (61kg Freestyle): Deepak – defeated Nuraddin Novruzov (Azerbaijan) 9-8.

With inputs from IANS