Kajal Dhochak wins silver as India creates history at World Wrestling Championships
India Today reported Kajal Dhochak became the first Indian woman to win a heavyweight medal at the World Wrestling Championships.
Kajal Dhochak won silver in the women’s 76kg final at the 2026 World Wrestling Championships in Astana after losing 6-8 to Anastasiya Alpyeyeva. India Today reported she is the first Indian woman to win a heavyweight medal at the Worlds.
Key takeaways
- Kajal Dhochak won silver in women’s 76kg at the World Wrestling Championships 2026 in Astana.
- She lost the final 6-8 to Ukraine’s Anastasiya Alpyeyeva.
- India Today reported she is the first Indian woman to win a heavyweight medal at the Worlds.
- News18 reported two Indian women reached gold medal bouts at the same edition for the first time.
- Republic World said Neelam Sirohi also won silver in the 50kg final.
Indian wrestlers Kajal Dhochak and Neelam Sirohi concluded their historic run at the World Championships on Wednesday, returning with two silver medals after losing their respective final bouts in Astana, Kazakhstan. In the 76kg title clash, 18-year-old Kajal Dhochak took on Ukraine’s Anastasiya Alpyeyeva.
Making her senior World Championships debut after winning two U20 world titles, Kajal came agonisingly close to gold, conceding a four-point sequence in the final 30 seconds to lose 6-8. The bout was finely poised at 4-4 before the late setback, leaving the Indian with silver.
Neelam Sirohi, 26, claimed her maiden world medal after years of perseverance on the international circuit. Taking the mat in the 50kg final, she faced Japan’s four-time world champion Yui Susaki. She lost by fall after trailing 0-5.
The podium finishes marked a new milestone for Indian wrestling, as it was the first time two Indian women competed in the finals at the same edition of the World Championships.
Their medals add to the breakthrough made by Anshu Malik, who became the first Indian woman to reach a World Championships final in 2021.
Kajal had earlier shown tremendous resilience in her path to the final, notably recovering from a 1-7 deficit to defeat Kyrgyzstan’s Aiperi Medet Kyzy 10-7 in the semifinals.
Neelam similarly displayed great composure throughout the tournament, securing her final berth with a comfortable 7-3 win over Kazakhstan’s Zeinep Bayanova. Elsewhere, Rajnita’s campaign in the 65kg category came to an end in the repechage round.
She went down 2-6 to Japan’s Nana Ikehata, missing out on the opportunity to progress to the bronze medal match. Tomorrow will see the concluding matches for women’s wrestling, with the final two weight classes, 55kg and 59kg, remaining.
Indian women’s silver medals at World Wrestling Championships 2026
Wrestler | Weight class | Result | Opponent |
|---|---|---|---|
Kajal Dhochak | 76kg | Lost 6-8 | Anastasiya Alpyeyeva |
Neelam Sirohi | 50kg | Lost by fall | Yui Susaki |
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