Babita Kumari Phogat (born 20 November 1989) is a former Indian professional wrestler and a politician from the state of Haryana. She is a multiple Commonwealth Games medalist, winning the gold medal in 2014 Commonwealth Games, and silver medals at 2010 Commonwealth Games and 2018 Commonwealth Games.[4] When she won the 2014 Commonwealth gold medal, she became the second Indian women wrestler to win a Commonwealth gold after Geeta Phogat, who had won it in 2010.
![]() Phogat in 2016 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Personal information | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Nationality | ![]() | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Born | Bhiwani,[1] Haryana, India | 20 November 1989|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Height | 160 cm (5 ft 3 in) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Spouse | Vivek Suhag | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Sport | Freestyle wrestling | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Event | 55 kg | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Coached by | Mahavir Singh Phogat | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Medal record
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Updated on 18 September 2015 |
Babita participated in the Rio 2016 Olympics in the 53 Kg women's wrestling, though she could not make it to the podium. Earlier, she had won a bronze medal at the 2013 Asian Wrestling Championships tournament in New Delhi, India; and another bronze at the 2012 World Wrestling Championships.[4] Later in 2019, after retiring from sports, Babita Phogat entered politics by joining the Bharatiya Janata Party.[5]
Personal life and family
editBabita was born in Balali village of Charkhi Dadri district, Haryana in a family of wrestlers.[6] Her father Mahavir Singh Phogat, is a former wrestler himself and recipient of India's prominent sports honor, the Dronacharya Award.[7] Mahavir Singh started coaching Babita and her elder sister, Geeta Phogat from an early age.[8] Geeta Phogat, went on to win India's first gold medal in women's wrestling at the Commonwealth Games in 2010.
Babita's extended family includes several national and international wrestlers, including cousin Vinesh Phogat who also won gold, in the 48 kg category, at the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow.[9][10][11] Her youngest sister, Ritu Phogat, too is an international level wrestler and has won a gold medal at the 2016 Commonwealth Wrestling Championship. Her younger sister, Sangita Phogat is also a wrestler. Babita, along with her sisters and cousins, have contributed to a change in mindset and attitude towards girls and women in home-state Haryana and rest of the nation.[12][13]
In June 2019, Babita announced her engagement to fellow wrestler Vivek Suhag, whom she later married in November of the same of year. [14] She and her husband welcomed their first child, a baby boy, on January 11, 2021.[5]
Career
editEarly Career (2009 - 2013)
edit2009 Commonwealth Wrestling Championship
editIn the tournament in Jalandhar, Punjab, Babita won the gold medal in the women's freestyle 51 kg category.[15]
2010 Commonwealth Games
editAt the 2010 Commonwealth Games, Babita won the silver medal in the women's freestyle 51 kg category after being defeated by Ifeoma Christi Nwoye of Nigeria in the gold medal match with the score of 0–2, 4–5.[16]
2011 Commonwealth Wrestling Championship
editIn the tournament held in Melbourne, Australia, Babita won the gold medal in the women's freestyle 48 kg category.[15]
2012 World Wrestling Championships
editIn the Round of 16 of the 2012 World Wrestling Championships, Babita faced Hsin-Ju Chiu of Taipei whom she beat 5:0. Her quarter-finals opponent was Risako Kawai of Japan whom she beat 5:0 to qualify for the semi-finals. She lost 1:3 to Jessica Anne Marie MacDonald of Canada in the semi-finals. She was then able to contest for the bronze medal which she won in the women's freestyle 51 kg category by beating Zamira Rakhmanova of Russia 5:0.[17]
2013 Asian Wrestling Championships
editAt the 2013 Asian Wrestling Championships tournament in New Delhi, India, Babita won the bronze medal in the women's freestyle 55 kg category along with Han Kum-ok of North Korea.
Prime Career (2014 - 2018)
edit2014 Commonwealth Games (Gold Medal)
editIn the women's freestyle 55 kg category at the 2014 Commonwealth Games, Babita's first opponent in the quarter-finals was Kathryn Marsh of Scotland whom she beat 9–2, 4–0 (classification points 4:1). Her opponent in the semi-finals was Louisa Porogovska of England whom she beat 2–0 (classification points 5:0) – victory by fall (wrestling terminology). In the gold medal bout, she was up against Brittanee Laverdure of Canada whom she beat 5–0, 4–2 (classification points 3:1) to win the gold medal.[18]
2014 Asian Games
editBabita was not able to repeat her Commonwealth Games feat at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea. In the Round of 16 of the women's freestyle 55 kg category, she faced Srey Mao Dorn of Mongolia whom she beat 5:0. In the quarter-finals, she faced Aiym Abdildina of Kazakhstan whom she beat 3:1. She lost 0:4 to Olympic champion Saori Yoshida of Japan in the semi-finals. She was able to contest for the bronze medal but lost 1:3 to her opponent Xuechun Zhong of China.[19]
2015 Asian Wrestling Championships
editBabita defeated Abdy Kadyrova Elsa of Kyrgyzstan 10–0 in the quarterfinal of the 2015 Asian Wrestling Championships, after getting the better of Zukhra Mustanova of Uzbekistan by the same margin in the qualification round. Babita failed to enter the final as she lost her semifinal bout to Pak Yong-Mi of North Korea, losing in the last five seconds.
With a chance for a podium finish, Babita lost to Zhuldyz Eshimova-Turtbayeva of Kazakhstan 3–6 in the bronze medal play-off.[20][21]
2016 Rio Olympics
editBabita became the third and final entry from India in the women's wrestling for the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro. She represented India along with her cousin Vinesh Phogat. She qualified for the Rio Games after her opponent failed a doping test in the qualifying tournament and the quota was given to India.[22] In the first round, Babita, who was competing in the women’s 53 kg class, faced Maria Prevolaraki of Greece, who displayed a tight defense gaining points in both the three-minute periods, wherein 26-year-old Babita initially got a leg hold on her rival, but eventually lost the match 1-5, bowing out of Olympics.[23]
2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games
editBabita Kumari Phogat won the silver medal in women's;53kg freestyle wrestling at 2018 Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast. [24]
Popular culture
editThe film Dangal, which was released in 2016, is loosely based on the story of her and her elder sister, Geeta Phogat. Babita was portrayed by Sanya Malhotra and her younger self by Suhani Bhatnagar.[25][26][27]
Politics
editIn August 2019, she joined the Bharatiya Janata Party after expressing support for Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his policies for sports promotion.[28] She lost to Sombir Sangwan in October 2019 in Haryana assembly elections from Dadri (Haryana Vidhan Sabha constituency).[29]
Filmography
editTelevision
editYear | Title | Role | Notes |
---|---|---|---|
2019 | Nach Baliye | Contestant | place-12 |
2022 | Lock Upp | Contestant | Locked out (Day 21) |
Other titles
editSee also
editReferences
edit- ^ "BABITA KUMARI". Commonwealth Games Federation. Archived from the original on 23 November 2020. Retrieved 22 April 2016.
- ^ "Indian women win three gold in Commonwealth Wrestling". Zee News. PTI. 19 December 2009. Archived from the original on 27 November 2016. Retrieved 27 November 2016.
- ^ "RESULTS – 2011 Championships". commonwealthwrestling.sharepoint.com. Commonwealth Amateur Wrestling Association (CAWA). Archived from the original on 13 March 2016. Retrieved 18 September 2015.
- ^ a b "Babita clinches bronze in World Championships". Hindustan Times. Archived from the original on 12 November 2014. Retrieved 11 November 2014.
- ^ a b "Babita Phogat and Mahavir Phogat join BJP". The Times of India.
- ^ Anindita Ghosh (8 June 2016). "The Powerhouse Phogat Siblings and their Cousin - Deeta, Babita and Vinesh". Femina. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
- ^ Hindol Basu (14 June 2015). "The hero behind 'Dangal' – Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
- ^ IANS (11 August 2014). "Wrestling coach Mahavir Phogat overlooked for Dronacharya Award – Sports". Mid-Day. Retrieved 18 December 2018.
- ^ "Meet the medal winning Phogat sisters". Archived from the original on 22 November 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
- ^ "Wrestling coach Mahavir Phogat overlooked for Dronacharya Award". 11 August 2014. Archived from the original on 23 December 2016. Retrieved 3 August 2015.
- ^ The Powerhouse Phogat Siblings and their Cousin - Deeta, Babita and Vinesh Archived 28 March 2019 at the Wayback Machine, Femina.
- ^ "'Phogat sisters' build their legacy in wrestling". www.sunday-guardian.com. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Meet the medal winning Phogat sisters | Latest News & Updates at Daily News & Analysis". dna. Archived from the original on 22 November 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Babita Phogat all set to get married | off the field News - Times of India". The Times of India.
- ^ a b "Home". commonwealthwrestling.sharepoint.com. Archived from the original on 19 April 2013. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ Chetan Sharma (8 October 2010). "CWG wrestling: Anita, Alka win gold, Babita bags silver". New Delhi: Web India. Archived from the original on 20 November 2014. Retrieved 20 November 2014.
- ^ "International Wrestling Database". www.iat.uni-leipzig.de. Archived from the original on 26 December 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Glasgow 2014 – Babita Kumari Profile". g2014results.thecgf.com. Archived from the original on 8 December 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Athletes_Profile | Biographies | Sports". www.incheon2014ag.org. Archived from the original on 24 August 2020. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Sakshi Malik, Lalita Win Bronze in Asian Wrestling Championship". NDTVSports.com. Archived from the original on 23 September 2015. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Indian Wrestlers Fail to Make a Mark in World Wrestling Championships". NDTVSports.com. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "Khatri, Babita bag Rio berths, take Indian wrestlers' count to 8". 11 May 2016. Archived from the original on 17 August 2016. Retrieved 18 August 2016.
- ^ "Babita Kumari loses her wrestling bout, bows out of Rio Olympics 2016 – Firstpost". Firstpost. 18 August 2016. Archived from the original on 22 October 2016. Retrieved 21 October 2016.
- ^ "CWG 2018, Wrestling highlights: Sushil Kumar, Rahul Aware win gold medal; Babita Kumari wins silver; Kiran wins bronze". 12 April 2018. Archived from the original on 12 April 2018. Retrieved 12 April 2018.
- ^ "Aamir Khan to play Mahavir Phogat in Dangal, meets his wrestler daughters Geeta and Babita". 30 July 2015. Archived from the original on 11 April 2023. Retrieved 2 August 2015.
- ^ "This is how Aamir is preparing for his role in Dangal". Archived from the original on 30 July 2015.
- ^ "Ranbir Kapoor, Karan Johar visit Aamir Khan post his injury". Bollywood Mantra. Retrieved 25 October 2016.
- ^ "Wrestler Babita Phogat, father Mahavir join BJP, Kiren Rijiju welcomes wrestler duo". Archived from the original on 30 September 2019. Retrieved 30 September 2019.
- ^ "Home". Archived from the original on 17 September 2021. Retrieved 25 October 2019.
- ^ "International Wrestling Database". www.iat.uni-leipzig.de. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "International Wrestling Database". www.iat.uni-leipzig.de. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
- ^ "International Wrestling Database". www.iat.uni-leipzig.de. Archived from the original on 5 March 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2015.
External links
edit- Babita Kumari – FILA database Archived 14 July 2015 at the Wayback Machine