Narsingh Pancham Yadav (born 6 August 1989) is an Indian wrestler. At the

2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games (Hindi: 2010 राष्ट्रमण्डल खेल), officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Delhi 2010, was an international multi-sport event that was held in Delhi, India, f ...

, he won the gold medal in the men's freestyle 74 kg category. He was banned for 4 years and barred from the

2016 Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics ( pt, Jogos Olímpicos de Verão de 2016), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad ( pt, Jogos da XXXI Olimpíada) and also known as Rio 2016, was an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 20 ...

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro ( , , ; literally 'River of January'), or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of the same name, Brazil's List of Brazilian states by population, third-most populous state, and the List of largest citi ...

by the

Court of Arbitration for Sport The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS; french: Tribunal arbitral du sport, ''TAS'') is an international body established in 1984 to settle disputes related to sport through arbitration. Its headquarters are in Lausanne, Switzerland and its c ...

after the

World Anti-Doping Agency The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA; french: Agence mondiale antidopage, AMA) is a foundation initiated by the International Olympic Committee based in Canada to promote, coordinate, and monitor the fight against drugs in sports. The agency's k ...

(WADA) appealed against the decision of the

National Anti-Doping Agency The National Anti-Doping Agency of India is India's national organisation responsible for promoting, coordinating, and monitoring the doping control program in sports in all its forms. As listed on its official web portal, the agency deals with ...

to allow him to compete even after he failed a doping test by testing positive for

anabolic steroids Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related and have similar effects t ...

. The National Anti-Doping Agency claimed Yadav's sample had been sabotaged by a rival. He is triple

Maharashtra Kesari Maharashtra Kesari ( in Sanskrit) is an Indian-style wrestling championship, established in 1854 in Maharashtra, India. It is organized by the ''Maharashtra Kustigir Parishad''. Prize Cash prize was awarded to the winner since the start. Bu ...

, a title in Indian

kushti The ''kushti'' () also known as kosti, kusti and kustig is the sacred girdle worn by invested Zoroastrians around their waists. Along with the sedreh, the kushti is part of the ritual dress of the Zoroastrians. Origin The Avestan term for ...

. He is the first wrestler to win the title 3 times in a row for 2011, 2012 and 2013. He was awarded

Arjuna Award The Arjuna Award, officially known as Arjuna Awards for Outstanding Performance in Sports and Games, is the second-highest sporting honour of India, the highest being the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award. The award is named after Arjuna, on ...

in 2012 for his contribution to the wrestling.

Personal life and family

Narsingh Yadav is the son of Pancham Yadav and Bhulna Devi from eastern

Uttar Pradesh Uttar Pradesh (; , 'Northern Province') is a state in northern India. With over 200 million inhabitants, it is the most populated state in India as well as the most populous country subdivision in the world. It was established in 1950 ...

. Narsingh and his brother Vinod both lived with their father Pancham and his mother in the Neema village in

Varanasi Varanasi (; ; also Banaras or Benares (; ), and Kashi.) is a city on the Ganges river in northern India that has a central place in the traditions of pilgrimage, death, and mourning in the Hindu world. * * * * The city has a syncretic t ...

. Both the brothers became wrestlers. His brother Vinod Yadav is Ticket collecter in

Indian Railways Indian Railways (IR) is a statutory body under the ownership of Ministry of Railways, Government of India that operates India's national railway system. It manages the fourth largest national railway system in the world by size, with a tot ...

, Narsingh has been training since he was 13 and is currently a resident of suburban

Jogeshwari Jogeshwari (Pronunciation: ͡ʒoɡeːʃʋəɾiː is a suburb located in the western part of Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It is notable for its caves - 'Jogeshwari Caves', particularly one containing a shrine of the Hindu Goddess Jogeshwari, ...

Mumbai Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the secon ...

. Narsingh is a Deputy superintendent of police in

Maharashtra Police Maharashtra Police ( IAST: ''Mahārāṣṭra Polīs Sēvā'', formerly ''Bombay State Police'') is the law enforcement agency responsible for the Indian state of Maharashtra. It is headed by Director General of Police, Rajnish Seth (IPS), and ...

. Narsingh Yadav is married to wrestler Shilpi Sheoran.

Career

He won a gold medal in the Asian championships, in the freestyle 74 kg, in 2010.

2010 Commonwealth Games The 2010 Commonwealth Games (Hindi: 2010 राष्ट्रमण्डल खेल), officially known as the XIX Commonwealth Games and commonly known as Delhi 2010, was an international multi-sport event that was held in Delhi, India, f ...

At the Games held at home in New Delhi, India, Narsingh Yadav was a last-minute replacement and competed in the men's freestyle 74 kg category. He managed to surprise everyone and won the gold medal, beating Richard Brian Addinall of South Africa in the gold medal bout.

2011 Commonwealth Championship

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/ Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a me ...

, Australia, Narsingh finished second in the Commonwealth Championship winning the silver medal, losing in the final to Cleopas Ncube of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

2012 Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

At the

Olympics The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a var ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, Narsingh Yadav lost his opening bout against Matt Gentry of

in the 74 kg freestyle event and was knocked out of the tournament.

2014 Asian Games The 2014 Asian Games ( ko, 2014년 아시아 경기대회/2014년 아시안 게임, Icheon sip-sa nyeon Asia gyeonggi daehoe/Icheon sip-sa nyeon Asian Geim), officially known as the 17th Asian Games ( ko, 제17회 아시아 경기대회/제17회 ...

In the round of 16 in Incheon,

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

, Narsingh lost 1:3 to Rashid Kurbanov of

Uzbekistan Uzbekistan (, ; uz, Ozbekiston, italic=yes / , ; russian: Узбекистан), officially the Republic of Uzbekistan ( uz, Ozbekiston Respublikasi, italic=yes / ; russian: Республика Узбекистан), is a doubly landlocked co ...

. With the Uzbek grappler qualifying for the final, Narsingh was able to compete for a medal through the repechage where he first faced

Ramazan Kambarov Ramazan often refers to: * Ramadan or Ramazan, the holy month in Islam during which Muslims fast for 30 days Ramazan may also refer to: Given name (people) Sportsmen *Ramazan Tavşancıoğlu (born 1984), Australian football (soccer) player ...

Turkmenistan Turkmenistan ( or ; tk, Türkmenistan / Түркменистан, ) is a country located in Central Asia, bordered by Kazakhstan to the northwest, Uzbekistan to the north, east and northeast, Afghanistan to the southeast, Iran to the s ...

and beat him 4:1. In the bronze medal bout, he was successful in securing the bronze medal with a 3:1 win over

Daisuke Shimada is a common masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings Daisuke can be written using different kanji characters and can mean: *大輔, "big, assist" *大介, "big, mediate" *大祐, "big, bless" *大助, "big, help" *大典, "big, law/rule ...

of Japan. In honour of his bronze medal, Narsingh, along with Seema Punia, was awarded a cash prize of Rs 50 lakh by the state government of

2015–present

At the 2015 Asian Wrestling Championships, Yadav, who has been included in the 74 kg category in the absence of double-Olympic medalist Sushil Kumar, lost to

of Japan 9–12 in the qualification round, but qualified for the repechage round after the latter reached the final. In his repechage bout, he defeated Byungmin Kong of South Korea 15–4 to enter the bronze-medal play-off. He bagged 3–1 classification points to outplay Zhiger Zakirov of

Kazakhstan Kazakhstan, officially the Republic of Kazakhstan, is a transcontinental country located mainly in Central Asia and partly in Eastern Europe. It borders Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental coun ...

and won the bronze medal. Competing at the 2015 World Championships in

Las Vegas Las Vegas (; Spanish language, Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the List of United States cities by population, 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the U.S. state, state of Neva ...

, Yadav won 3:1 in the first round over Hanoch Rachamin of Israel. His next opponent was Soener Demirtas of Turkey whom he beat 3:1. In the third round, Narsingh was up against Livan Lopez Azcuy of Cuba and won 4:1. In the fourth round, he lost 3:1 to Unurbat Purevjav of Mongolia. This allowed him to contest for the bronze medal bout which he almost lost to

Zelimkhan Khadjiev Zelimkhan Khadjiev (russian: Зелимхан Хаджиев; born May 20, 1994 in Dagestan) is a Russian-French freestyle wrestler of Chechen heritage. He competed in the men's freestyle 74 kg event at the 2016 Summer Olympics, in which he wa ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

who was leading 12-4 with just a minute to go, and right out of nowhere he pulled a headlock and pinned

with a point tally of 8-12. The bronze medal bout made news across India not just for his spectacular comeback but also because of one particular move – the 'Dhak' move used in dangals or local wrestling clubs across India. Yadav's assistant coach Jagmal Singh who had coached Yadav for ten years recounted, "It’s called Dhak. It’s a showboating wrestling move that people use on mud-courts during big village-based tournaments. It's a crowd pleaser. But very difficult to pull off accurately."

2016 Olympics controversy

Having won bronze at the World Championships qualified Yadav to the

2016 Rio Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...

but Sushil Kumar, who had missed the 2016 Summer Olympics qualification event due to injury, asked for a trial between himself and Narsingh and moved his request to the

Delhi High Court The High Court of Delhi (IAST: ''dillī uchcha nyāyālaya'') was established on 31 October 1966, through the ''Delhi High Court Act, 1966'', with four judges, Chief Justice K. S. Hegde, Justice I. D. Dua, Justice H. R. Khanna and Justice S. ...

. It was only after his appeal was rejected that it was confirmed that Narsingh was going to the

. However, Yadav failed two anti-doping tests, conducted on 25 June and 5 July 2016, testing positive for

metandienone Metandienone, also known as methandienone or methandrostenolone and sold under the brand name Dianabol (D-Bol) among others, is an androgen and anabolic steroid (AAS) medication which is still quite often used because of its affordability and eff ...

, which he asserted was to "sabotage" his chances of competing at the Olympics, following which he was given a clean chit by NADA. The

challenged the decision and the case was moved to the

. A day prior to Yadav's first bout at the Olympics, on 18 August 2016, he was handed a four-year ban by the Court of Arbitration for Sport.

Pro Wrestling League

For the inaugural edition of the Pro Wrestling League, Narsingh was bought by the Bangalore franchise, owned by JSW Sport, during the auction conducted in

New Delhi New Delhi (, , ''Naī Dillī'') is the Capital city, capital of India and a part of the NCT Delhi, National Capital Territory of Delhi (NCT). New Delhi is the seat of all three branches of the government of India, hosting the Rashtrapati B ...

. The World Championship bronze medallist was the marquee player picked up by the Bangalore franchise for Rs 34.5 lakh. The Pro Wrestling League is scheduled to kick off from 10 December till 27 December.

Felicitations and awards

During the legendary Pele's visit to India to attend the final of the

Subroto Cup Subroto Cup International Football Tournament is a prestigious international inter-school association football, football tournament that is held annually in New Delhi, India. The tournament held annually since 1960, is named after the Indian Air ...

, Narsingh was invited to a special dinner hosted by the organisers of the Subroto Cup and felicitated for his contributions to the sport of wrestling in India.

Other titles

* Dave Schultz Memorial Tournament, 2012 – Fourth place

Controversy

Yadav was given a job of deputy superintendent of police by the state after his 2010 Commonwealth medal. However he was caught cheating in an internal exam and faced an inquiry.

References

External links

Narsingh Yadav – FILA database

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Yadav, Narsingh Pancham 1989 births Living people Commonwealth Games gold medallists for India Wrestlers at the 2010 Commonwealth Games Wrestlers at the 2012 Summer Olympics Sportspeople from Mumbai Sportspeople from Varanasi Olympic wrestlers of India Wrestlers at the 2006 Asian Games Wrestlers at the 2010 Asian Games Wrestlers at the 2014 Asian Games Asian Games medalists in wrestling World Wrestling Championships medalists Indian male sport wrestlers Asian Games bronze medalists for India Wrestlers at the 2016 Summer Olympics Commonwealth Games medallists in wrestling Medalists at the 2014 Asian Games Sport wrestlers from Maharashtra Recipients of the Arjuna Award Asian Wrestling Championships medalists