India Continues Strong Run at U17 World Championships with Two Silver and Two Bronze Medals
India's women's wrestlers continued their impressive campaign at the 2026 U17 World Wrestling Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan, adding two silver medals and two bronze medals to the country's tally on Friday.
Strong performances from Sandhya Vishnoi, Akshara, Avanshika, and Taniya highlighted another successful day for the Indian contingent as the nation reinforced its status as one of the emerging forces in age-group women's wrestling.
Sandhya Vishnoi and Akshara fought their way into their respective gold medal bouts before settling for silver, while Avanshika and Taniya bounced back strongly to secure bronze medals in their categories.
The four-medal haul further underlined the depth of India's women's wrestling programme ahead of the men's freestyle competition, which begins on Saturday.
Competing in the 46kg category, Sandhya Vishnoi enjoyed an outstanding tournament as she advanced confidently through the draw to reach the gold medal match. Her run to the final showcased her technical ability and fighting spirit, setting up a title clash against Japan's Kokona Makino, one of the strongest competitors in the weight class.
The final proved to be a difficult challenge for the Indian wrestler.
Makino maintained control throughout the contest, using her speed and attacking combinations to build an early lead.
Despite Sandhya's determined effort to stay in the bout, the Japanese grappler continued to dictate proceedings, eventually securing a 13-2 victory on points.
Although she missed out on the gold medal, Sandhya's silver represents one of the finest performances of her young career and adds another significant international medal to India's growing collection.
India's second silver medal of the day came in the 53kg category, where Akshara also produced a remarkable run to the championship final. Having impressed throughout the competition, the Indian entered the gold medal match full of confidence against the United States' Marlee J. Solomon.
The American, however, proved difficult to contain. Solomon dominated the final with aggressive attacking wrestling and denied Akshara opportunities to establish any rhythm. The contest concluded with an 11-0 victory in favour of the American, leaving the Indian to settle for the silver medal.
Despite the defeat, Akshara's consistency across the tournament demonstrated her enormous potential and confirmed her place among the world's leading wrestlers in her age category.
India's medal tally continued to grow in the 61kg category, where Avanshika delivered an excellent tactical performance to secure the bronze medal. Facing Kazakhstan's Aruzhan Bakytnur in the third-place playoff, the Indian displayed maturity and control from the opening whistle. Rather than allowing her opponent to dictate the pace, Avanshika remained disciplined defensively while capitalising on scoring opportunities whenever they emerged.
Her intelligent approach resulted in a convincing 5-1 victory on points (VPO1), comfortably securing her place on the podium. The bronze medal represented a deserved reward for a campaign in which she consistently demonstrated technical quality and composure under pressure.
India's fourth medal of the day came in the 69kg category, where Taniya produced one of the most dominant performances of the session. Taking on Maja Wejchan of Poland in the bronze medal contest, the Indian wasted little time asserting control. Taniya attacked relentlessly throughout the bout, combining aggressive offence with disciplined defence to keep her Polish opponent under constant pressure. Her superiority was reflected on the scoreboard as she cruised to a commanding 12-2 victory, comfortably securing another bronze medal for India.
The emphatic nature of the win highlighted Taniya's attacking ability and ensured India concluded another successful day with four podium finishes.
The latest medal haul further emphasises the impressive consistency of India's women's wrestling programme at the U17 level. Across multiple weight categories, Indian wrestlers have demonstrated the technical skills, tactical awareness and resilience required to compete against the world's strongest nations. Earlier in the championships, India had already celebrated podium finishes through other wrestlers, and Friday's performances continued that momentum.
Winning medals against traditional wrestling powerhouses such as Japan, the United States, Kazakhstan and Poland reflects the growing strength of India's junior wrestling system.
With the women's competition now concluded, focus will shift to the men's freestyle events, which begin on Saturday in Baku. India will have representation across five weight categories—48kg, 55kg, 65kg, 80kg, and 110kg—as the men's team looks to build on the success achieved by their female teammates. The strong start provided by the women's contingent has already given India significant momentum heading into the freestyle competition.
If the men's wrestlers can replicate those performances, India could finish the championships with one of its strongest medal tallies in recent editions.
Results
46kg – Gold Medal Match
Kokona Makino (Japan) defeated Sandhya Vishnoi (India) 13-2
Sandhya Vishnoi wins Silver
53kg – Gold Medal Match
Marlee J. Solomon (USA) defeated Akshara (India) 11-0
Akshara wins Silver
61kg – Bronze Medal Match
Avanshika (India) defeated Aruzhan Bakytnur (Kazakhstan) 5-1 (VPO1)
Avanshika wins Bronze
69kg – Bronze Medal Match
Taniya (India) defeated Maja Wejchan (Poland) 12-2
Taniya wins Bronze
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