London Olympics: Yogeshwar Dutt wins bronze medal in 60kg freestyle

The Indian wrestler defeated Jong Myong Ri of North Korea in the bronze medal match of the 60kg wrestling competition on Saturday.  Send your wishes | How he progressed in pictures | CELEBRATION PICTURES 

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India's Yogeshwar Dutt
India's Yogeshwar Dutt defeated Jong Myong Ri of North Korea.

Two decades of toil in wrestling and a progression from mud akharas to the modern day mat culminated in Olympic glory for lion-hearted Yogeshwar Dutt as he won bronze in the 60kg freestyle category at the London Olympics.

Finally, when the bearded 29-year-old police officer based in New Delhi who trains at the Chhatrasal Stadium tore the form book to shreds and pinned down Ri Jong Myong of North Korea in the last repechage bout, it was a true story of guts and large-hearted effort.

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"I have devoted 21 years of my life to this sport and this is the biggest day of my life," said the tired Indian grappler as he went to receive his medal.

With Yogeshwar's coaches egging him on from the sidelines, the atmosphere inside the Excel arena was electrifying.

Knowledgeable and discerning fans waved the India tricolour as the hall egged on Yogeshwar for the huge challenge.

This was a day when the bearded Yogeshwar had to stretch every sinew and breathe hard as he reserved the best for the close.

Three points came in a jiffy towards the end in the third repechage round against Ri Jong Myong as Yogeshwar showed great inner strength to win.

"It's an incredible feeling and I am glad I have been able to increase India's medal tally to five in London," said Yogeshwar.

Not many would know three years ago Yogeshwar almost had to give up wrestling as he had suffered career-threatening ligament injuries on his knee. He stayed out of the sport for a long time and then bounced back.

On Saturday, in the first round of repechage, Yogeshwar showed great mettle in tackling Franklin Matos Gomez 2-0, courtesy two clinch efforts.

With both the grapplers evenly matched, it was the "luck of the coloured ball" and on both occasions Yogeshwar got the chance to go on the offensive with "clinches."

Yogeshwar showed his experience by toppling Franklin with ease.

On a day when the Indian had lost earlier in the pre-quarter finals to four-time world champion Besik Kudukhov of Russia, luck smiled on Yogeshwar.

With Besik making the final, it gave 29-year-old a fresh lease of life in the 60-kg freestyle wrestling competition.

In the second round of repechage, Yogehswar faced Iran's sturdy Esmaeil Poorjouybari.

This was easily billed as the most difficult bout for Yogeshwar as the Iranian is a respected figure in international circles.

Yogeshwar was aggressive from the beginning. He won the first round by a "clinch" and in the subsequent rounds showed he had muscle and mass to tackle the Iranian.

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The effects of competing in his fourth bout of the day could not be seen from the stands as the Yogeshwar brought into play his tons of experience.

The day began on a tricky note for Yogeshwar as he lost in the main draw second round.

After that, being given repeated rub-downs by his coaches and support staff, Yogeshwar prepared for the repechage.

It was only at the Beijing Olympics repechage was introduced in wrestling, where Sushil Kumar won bronze.

The Beijing Games hero will be competing on Sunday and hopes to raise the bar once again.

Overall, looking at the depth in Indian wrestling, Yogeshwar's rise to the top is not unexpected. Yet, given his bad luck with injuries and being unable to do too well in the world championships in 2010 and 2011, this was a phenomenal effort.

The sheer experience of having competed in the Athens Olympics in 2004 and Beijing 2008showed he was better prepared for the challenges today.

Yogeshwar was inspired by Balraj pehelwan and has taken to a sport where the human effort is backed by scientific inputs.

And Yogeshwar has been a strong votary of foreign coaches coming to India and helping out the grapplers with technique.