No Indian woman had ever stood on the top step of a senior World Championships podium. On Friday, 30 October, Manisha Bhanwala changed that — and she did it the hard way, coming back from 0-6 down to beat American Abigail Nette 8-6 in the women’s 59kg freestyle final at the Senior World Wrestling Championships in Astana, Kazakhstan.
The final began badly for the 29-year-old from Haryana. Nette, a Pan American champion, raced to a 6-0 lead, and at the end of the first period Bhanwala trailed 1-6. What followed was a masterclass in composure. Bhanwala scored her first point through a step-out, produced a brilliant move to level the score at 6-6, and then executed another takedown in the closing stages to take an 8-6 lead — an advantage she held until the final whistle.
The gold capped a remarkable campaign for the Indian women’s contingent, which finished with four medals: Bhanwala’s gold, silver medals for Kajal Dhochak and Neelam Sirohi, and bronze for Tanu Sharma in the 72kg category. Three Indian women reached world finals at the same championships for the first time, a depth of talent that Indian wrestling has been building towards for years.
Bhanwala’s achievement also puts her in rare company. She is only the second Indian wrestler, man or woman, to win a senior world title, after Sushil Kumar won the men’s 66kg freestyle crown in 2010. Indian women had reached the podium at the senior World Championships 13 times since 2006 without winning gold — a run that began with Anshu Malik’s silver in 2021 as the first women’s final appearance and that Bhanwala has now ended.
Her route to the final was no procession either. Bhanwala beat Laurence Beauregard, a World Championships bronze medallist, ending that bout with a pin. It was her third World Championships, and the experience showed in the final’s decisive moments, when she trusted the late-scoring ability she had trained for rather than panicking at a six-point deficit.
“Some people are born to create history,” Bhanwala said after her return, as she received a grand welcome at Delhi airport on 1 November. The reception was fitting: a first world title is a landmark in any sport, and in Indian wrestling it closes a chapter that has been open for two decades.
Looking ahead, Bhanwala has her eyes on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The 59kg category is not an Olympic weight class, so she plans to move back to the 57kg division for next year’s qualification events. The world title proves she belongs at the very top; the Olympic quest will test whether she can carry that form into a different weight — and onto the biggest stage of all.
