National wrestling | Gold for Antim, Manisha and Nisha

Double Worlds bronze medallist Antim Panghal, Asian champion Manisha Bhanwala and Olympian Nisha Dahiya emerged champions in the women’s competitions on the opening day of the National wrestling championships at the Veer Savarkar Sports Complex here on Friday.

Antim, who regularly competes in 53kg, won the 55kg crown. Manisha, the 62kg Asian champion, claimed the 57kg title, while Nisha secured the 68kg gold medal.

Despite brief challenges from Hansika (8-0) in the quarterfinals, Ahilya Shinde (14-8) in the semifinals and Jyoti in the final (5-0), Antim had a comfortable outing. In the final, both Antim and Jyoti showed their defensive skills, but the former executed a take-down in each period to win the match.

Haryana’s Manisha Bhanwala, in red, in action against Delhi’s Neha Sharma in the women’s 57kg gold medal match at the National Wrestling Championship in Ahmedabad on Friday, December 12, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
VIJAY SONEJI

“I had the experience of fighting with these girls. They shuffle between 53kg and 55kg. I wanted to avoid cutting my weight for this event. I will go back to 53kg for the Pro Wrestling League and other important events next year,” said Antim, who last competed in 55kg three years ago.

Manisha cruised to the final before overcoming Neha Sharma’s challenge for a 2-1 victory. In a bout involving no scoring moves, both earned points due to the rival’s passivity.

Nisha, who led 4-0 in the first period, pinned Srishti with more than two minutes left in the clock to bag the gold.

Railways’ Nisha Dahiya , in blue, in action against Delhi’s Srishti in the women’s 68kg gold medal match at the National Wrestling Championship in Ahmedabad on Friday, December 12, 2025.
| Photo Credit:
VIJAY SONEJI

Haryana picked up the team title, while Railways was runner-up.

The results: Women: 50kg: Gold: Neelam (RSPB) bt Shweta A. (Kar) by injury forfeiture; Bronze: Muskan (Har) bt Gauri Patil (Mah) ‘by fall,’ Shivanee Pawar (MP) bt Aarti Gurjar (Raj) 10-0.

53kg: Gold: Anjali (Raj) bt Swati Shinde (Mah) 8-8 by criteria; Bronze: Juli (UP) bt Archana (Del) 4-0, Manjeet Kaur (Pun) bt Meenakshi (Har) by fall.

55kg: Gold: Antim Panghal (RSPB) bt Jyoti (SSCB) 5-0; Bronze: Kriti (Del) bt Simranpreet Kaur (Pub) 4-2, Hansika (Har) bt Ahilya Shinde (Mah) 11-0.

57kg: Gold: Manisha Bhanwala (Har) bt Neha Sharma (Del) 2-1; Bronze: Tanvi (Mah) bt Chhaya Patel (MP) 12-1, Nitu (Chd) Naga Laxmi (Tel) 10-0.

59kg: Gold: Rajnita (Har) bt Pushpa Yadav (UP) 10-0; Bronze: Dhanashri (Mah) bt Prerna Mehta (HP) 14-4, Komal (RSPB) bt Soniya (Raj) 9-1.

62kg: Gold: Anjli (Har) bt Bhagyashri (Mah) ‘by fall;’ Bronze: Nitika (Del) bt Khushi Thakur (HP) ‘by fall,’ Mansi (RSPB) bt Raj Kaur (Pun) 10-0.

65kg: Gold: Pulkit (Har) bt Jaspreet Kaur (Pun) 10-0; Bronze: Monika (Raj) bt Bhateri (SSCB) 6-0, Freedom Yadav (UP) bt Neelam (Guj) 4-0.

68kg: Nisha Dahiya (RSPB) bt Srishti (Del) ‘by fall;’ Bronze: Mansi Lather (Har) bt Amruta (Mah) 11-0, Tanu Jat (MP) bt Manjusha M. (Ker) 10-0.

72kg: Gold: Diksha Malik (SSCB) bt Harshita (Har) 10-9; Bronze: Priyanka (RSPB) bt Sanofar (Guj) 10-0, Maya Mali (Raj) bt Jashanbir Kaur (Pun) 14-3.

76kg: Gold: Jyoti (Har) bt Priya (SSCB) 4-2; Bronze: Tanu (Raj) bt Pari Chaudhary (UP) 6-5, Kiran (RSPB) bt Kashish Verma (MP) ‘by fall.’