Wrestling
Indian Women wrestlers clinch team title at Hungary Ranking Series
India’s women wrestlers clinched the team title at the Hungary Ranking Series 2025 with a total of six medals, 2 gold, 2 silver, and 2 bronze.
Antim Panghal's Paris Olympics 2024 campaign ended in the first round where she lost to Turkiye's Zeynep Yetgil on August 7.
India’s women’s wrestling contingent wrapped up a successful campaign at the Polyák Imre & Varga János Memorial 2025 in Budapest by winning the team title, topping the standings with 130 points and a total of six medals, two gold, two silver, and two bronze.
On the final day of the women’s competition, Priya Malik added a silver in the 76kg category after narrowly losing 3-4 to Brazil’s Thamires Martins in the gold medal bout. This result ensured India’s strong finish in the team standings.
Earlier in the day, Asian champion Manisha Bhanwala earned a bronze in the 62kg category. She pinned Krystsina Sazykina of Belarus in her bronze medal match to return to the international podium.
The Indian women’s campaign was spearheaded by Olympian Antim Panghal, who claimed gold in the 53kg category with a 7-4 win over Russia’s Natalia Malysheva. This marked Antim’s second Ranking Series gold in a row, following her title-winning run at the Ulaanbaatar Open in Mongolia last month.
Harshita added the second gold medal for India in the 72kg category with a dominant 10-0 victory over four-time Asian champion Zhamila Bakbergenova of Kazakhstan.
In the 57kg category, Neha Sangwan had to settle for silver after a defeat via pinfall to Olympic champion Helen Maroulis of the USA. In the 50kg category, Neelam secured bronze with a win over Kseniya Stankevich of Belarus.
The Budapest Ranking Series is the final stop on the 2025 calendar, with ranking points from the event impacting seedings for the World Wrestling Championships to be held in Zagreb, Croatia in September. India fielded a full-strength squad across men’s freestyle, women’s freestyle, and Greco-Roman disciplines.
