Geeta Phogat Predicts More Olympic Medals for Indian Wrestling in LA 2028

She expressed confidence that the wrestlers' progress will lead to more medals at the showpiece event in 2028 in Los Angeles.

Geeta Phogat, present at the 'Fit India Sundays on Cycle with Women' event in New Delhi on Sunday, said, "With the way our players are moving forward and making progress, we will win more medals in wrestling at the upcoming Olympics," highlighting gold medals won by Sujeet Kalkal in the men's 65kg and Abhimanyou Mandwal in the men's 70kg events at the recently-concluded 2026 Asian Wrestling Championships.

She also congratulated the whole Indian wrestling contingent for their performance at the Asian Championships, saying, "I want to congratulate the Indian contingent for their strong showing at the Asian Wrestling Championships."

Notably, India signed off their 2026 Asian Wrestling Championships campaign in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on April 12. India clinched 17 medals at the event, finishing with a tally of two gold, six silver and nine bronze.

Apart from gold wins by Lalit Sehrawat and Nitesh Siwach, Aman Sehrawat (men's 61kg), Mukul Dahiya (men's 86kg), and Meenakshi Goyat (women's 53kg) finished as runners-up in their respective categories at the Asian Wrestling Championships.

Geeta Phogat also praised initiatives like Fit India Movement and Khelo India, saying events like 'Fit India Sundays on Cycle' boost public fitness awareness, encourage participation across cities, and send a positive message--especially for women.

"The initiatives like 'Fit India' and 'Khelo India', when started by PM Narendra Modi, have now heightened the awareness for fitness among people. When such an event happens every Sunday in major cities, it encourages widespread participation of people. It is a very good message, especially for women," she said.

Arjuna awardee and professional boxer Saweety Boora also said it was encouraging to see a growing number of women participating in the 'Fit India Sundays on Cycle' event, noting a significant rise in awareness and enthusiasm for fitness. She highlighted how changing societal attitudes, along with social media and such initiatives, are motivating women to step out, focus on their health and break traditional limitations.

"It felt amazing to see women coming forward like this. When I first came to the Fit India Cycling event, there wasn't such a craze then. But now I can see the craze growing; there is a great crowd now, especially women. Seeing such a craze among women for their fitness felt great. In earlier times, women were not even allowed to step out of their houses, and once they became mothers, they were told that this was their life now. Women used to have limited thinking. Now, there is social media, news and such programs are organised so they get motivated. Society's mindset is changing," Saweety Boora said.

Speaking about her current goals, Saweety Boora said that her primary focus is on LA Olympics preparation and expressed a strong desire to win a gold medal for the country, noting that while she has achieved other successes, an Olympic medal is still missing.

"My main preparations are for the Olympics. I want to win a gold medal for my country in the Olympics. I have won other medals, an Olympic medal is awaited," said Saweety.

Speaking about 'Fit India Sundays on Cycle', Deputy Director General in the Sports Authority of India (SAI), Mayank Srivastav, said that the Fit India Movement, launched in 2019, aims to encourage mass participation in fitness. He highlighted that the 'Fit India Sundays on Cycle' initiative was organised at around 1,000 locations nationwide with strong participation from women, promoting the message that fitness is essential, enjoyable, and can be achieved through simple activities like yoga, Zumba, and skipping," Mayank Srivata

"Fit India is basically a movement which was initiated by the Prime Minister. In 2019, we have to make more and more people join this. This was 'Sundays on Cycle with women'. This was done at least at 1000 places across the country, and women participated at all these locations. We wanted to tell them that their fitness is of the utmost priority. If they are healthy, the entire family will be healthy. We also wanted to tell them that fitness is fun, not a burden. You can be healthy even through Zumba, skipping rope and Yoga," he said.

For the unversed, Fit India Sundays on Cycle is organised by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports (MYAS) in collaboration with the Cycling Federation of India (CFI), Indian Rope Skipping Federation, Yogasana Bharat, Raahgiri Foundation, MY Bikes and MY Bharat.

The cycling drive is conducted simultaneously across all States and Union Territories, including SAI Regional Centres, National Centres of Excellence (NCOEs), SAI Training Centres (STCs), Khelo India State Centres of Excellence (KISCEs) and Khelo India Centres (KICs).

Launched in December 2024 by Union Minister for Youth Affairs and Sports Mansukh Mandaviya, Fit India Sundays on Cycle has grown into a powerful jan andolan, recording participation of over 28 lakh citizens across more than 2.63 lakh locations nationwide cumulatively, since December 2024.

- ANI