History-scripting wushu players recount journey after exploits at World Championships

New Delhi, Sep 10 (PTI) Aparna Dahiya took up wushu instead of wrestling to have the freedom of "using punches and kicks" while Kareena Kaushik was introduced to the sport during self defence classes while she was in school, not knowing they would one day script history for India at the World Championships.

India produced its best-ever performance at the World Wushu Championships held in Brazil from August 31 to September 7, returning with four medals -- three silver and one bronze -- all in the sanda events.

It was also the first time that three Indian women reached the finals of the prestigious competition.

"I was in school when during the PT period we got to know about the sport during self defense classes," the 21-year-old Kareena Kaushik, who won silver in the 60kg category on her international debut, told PTI Videos on the sidelines of the Sports Ministry's felicitation function on Wednesday.

"I was very intrigued to know more about it, so told my parents who readily agreed and then I started my journey." Her teammate Aparna Dahiya, from Sonepat, explained why she chose wushu in the first place.

“I never liked wrestling, you can’t use punches and kicks in that. So I chose wushu because of the freedom to strike," said the 21-year-old silver winner in 52kg division.

"I used to bunk classes and school to learn wushu and later formally started training.” Aparna had earlier won gold at Asia Cup in China and silver at Asian Championships in Macau.

For Sagar Dahiya, a 22-year-old from Nahari village in Sonepat, the journey began as a sort of punishment from his parents.

“I used to fight a lot during school time, as all boys do, I also liked to showcase my strength. My parents weren’t happy to see me fight like this on the streets. So they got me enrolled into wushu classes," said Sagar, who won a bronze in 56kg category.

"On the first day, my coach got impressed by the strength of my punches and kicks, that was the day, and today here I am with a medal in the World Championships.” Shivani Prajapati, from Dadri village in Greater Noida, completed the tally with a silver in the 75kg category.

“World Championship was my first international tournament and I won a silver medal. I want to continue to improve from here," said the 22-year-old, whose weight category is, however, not in Asian Games roster.

"My opponent in the final was from Iran. I felt that my punches and kicks didn’t have enough force to move and affect her much. So one key aspect to develop for me and hope that one day will be there at a competition like Asian Games and win a medal for the country.” Wushu Federation of India President Bhupender Singh Bajwa praised the players and said, “The players have a very bright future ahead. Out of the six weight categories that are there in Asian Games, we won medals in three categories.

"That’s a very good thing that wushu is becoming popular in the country as well. We expect at least 4-5 medals in the upcoming Asian Games.” The government, too, played its part in supporting the effort of the players. The Sports Ministry, through Sports Authority of India (SAI), allocated Rs 5 crore for wushu under the 2025-26 Annual Calendar for Training and Competition (ACTC), with Rs 70 lakh sanctioned for the team’s participation in World Championships in Brazil.

Even as they celebrated, the athletes were already reflecting on how to get better.

“I play on the back foot more so counter attacking my opponent becomes difficult for me. I hope that I can better this before the next major tournament,” said Kareena.

“My speed is an issue according to coaches, I will now work on that. Defence and offense is good but performing all together at desired pace is one thing that I hope I can improve upon before Asian Games,” she added.

“I wish I could have had a better defensive technique then would have won a better medal. But will now definitely put more effort as well to overcome this weakness," said Sagar.

Not only in Sanda, India also got encouraging result in Taolu, with Suraj Singh finishing in the top eight.

“We’ll definitely try to finish in the medal category next time around. This sport is picking up pace and I hope to see more centres to come up for this in the country and should not only be restricted to a handful of states. We are fully committed to win a medal at the Asian Games next year and hopefully will achieve it.” PTI HN PDS PDS PDS