Olympics: How Aman Sehrawat slashed 4.6 kgs to avoid Vinesh Phogat's fate

With Vinesh Phogat's disappointing disqualification in the back of his mind, Aman left no stone unturned in order to cut his weight within the permissible limits of his category.

Grappler Aman Sehrawat has become the youngest Olympic medallist from India. Just 21, he has clinched bronze medal in the 57-kg freestyle category by trouncing Puerto Rico’s Darian Cruz by 13-5.

However, his journey to the Olympic podium wasn't smooth sailing. Apart from the hard work, there was also the last-minute grueling weight-cut sessions that he had to endure. With Vinesh Phogat's disappointing disqualification in the back of his mind, Aman left no stone unturned to cut weight before his bronze medal match.

Aman's weight after the semi-final loss

According to reports, Aman weighed at 61.5 kgs after his semi-final defeat against his Japanese opponent, which was 4.6 kgs above the allowed limit in his category. Aman had approximately 10 hours to make weight the next morning and started to hustle for the same.

 

The Haryana wrestler was supported by two senior coaches, Jagmendar Singh and Virender Dahiya who made sure that the weight-in turns out to be successful this time.

Aman's gruelling weight cut process

The process started with a 90-minute mat session, where two senior coaches had him engage in standing wrestling. This was followed by a one-hour hot bath. At 12:30AM, he hit the gym for a nonstop, hour-long treadmill run. Afterward, he took a 30-minute break before undergoing five rounds of 5-minute sauna sessions.

By the end of the final session, Sehrawat had shed 3.6 kilos. He then received a massage, did some light jogging, and completed a 15-minute run. By 4:30AM, his weight had dropped to 56.9 kilos, 100 grams below the permissible limit, allowing the coach to breathe easy.