Sushil Kumar Solanki is a former Indian wrestler. He carried the Indian flag at the opening ceremony of 2012 London Olympics. His 2008 Olympic medal was second for India in wrestling, and the first since Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav’s bronze medal at the 1952 Summer Olympics.
| Bio/Wiki | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Sushil Kumar Solanki |
| Profession | Freestyle wrestler |
| Famous for | Winning two Olympic medals in 2008 and 2012 |
| Physical Stats & More | |
| Height (approx.) | in centimeters– 168 cm in meters– 1.68 m in feet & inches– 5’ 5½” |
| Weight (approx.) | in kilograms– 85 kg in pounds– 187 lbs |
| Body Measurements (approx.) | – Chest: 44 inches – Waist: 34 inches – Biceps: 16 inches |
| Eye Colour | Black |
| Hair Colour | Black |
| Wrestling | |
| Debut | International– • World Cadet Games in 1998 • Asian Wrestling Championships in 2003 in New Delhi |
| National Team | India |
| Coach/Mentor | Mahabali Satpal Singh |
| Records | • 2003 – Gold (60 kg) – London Commonwealth Championship • 2003 – Bronze (60 kg) – New Delhi Asian Championships • 2005 – Gold (66 kg) – Cape Town Commonwealth Championship • 2007 – Gold (66 kg) – London Commonwealth Championship • 2007 – Silver (66 kg) – Kyrgyzstan Asian Championships • 2008 – Bronze (66 kg) – Beijing Olympics • 2008 – Bronze (66 kg) – Jeju Island Asian Championships • 2009 – Gold (66 kg) – Jalandhar Commonwealth Championship • 2010 – Gold (66 kg) – New Delhi Asian Championships • 2010 – Gold (66 kg) – Moscow World Championships • 2010 – Gold (66 kg) – Delhi Commonwealth Games • 2012- Silver (66 kg) – London Summer Olympics • 2018- Gold (73 kg) – Gold Coast Commonwealth Games |
| Honours | • Arjuna Award in 2005 • Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna in 2008 • Padma Shri in 2011 |
| Rewards | For bronze medal at 2008 Beijing Olympics– • Rs. 5.5 million cash award and promotion to Assistant Commercial Manager in Indian Railways by Railway Ministry. • Rs. 5 million cash award by the Delhi Government. • Rs. 2.5 million cash award from the Haryana government. • Rs. 2.5 million cash award from the Steel Ministry of India. • A job offer as the DSP in the Haryana police department. • Rs. 1 million cash award from the Maharashtra State Government and MTNL each.For gold medal at 2010 World Wrestling Championship– • Rs. 1 million cash award from Indian Railways and an out-of-turn promotion from Assistant Commercial Manager. • Rs. 1 million cash award from Sports Authority of India. • Rs. 1 million cash award from the Delhi Government.For silver medal at 2012 London Olympics– • Rs. 20 million cash award from the Delhi Government. • Rs. 15 million cash award from the Haryana Government. • Rs. 7.5 million cash reward from the Indian Railway. • Haryana Government gifted Sushil Kumar a piece of land in Sonipat to build a wrestling academy. |
| Personal Life | |
| Date of Birth | 26 May 1983 (Thursday) |
| Age (As of 2024) | 40 Years of 2024 |
| Birthplace | Najafgarh, Delhi |
| Zodiac sign | Gemini |
| Nationality | Indian |
| Hometown | Najafgarh, Delhi |
| College/University | • Chaudhary Charan Singh University, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh • Noida College of Physical Education, Dadri |
| Educational Qualifications | • Graduation • Post Graduation |
| Food Habit | Vegetarian |
| Controversies[3] | • In 2012, Chhatrasal Stadium was Indian’s premium centre for the coaching wrestlers and new learners. However, after a public fallout between Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt, Dutt decided to leave the wrestling center and start his own coaching center. By 2015, many top wrestlers like Bajrang Punia left the academy and joined Dutt in his academy.
• In 2015, Sushil Kumar found himself involved in a controversy with Narsingh Yadav, a Mumbai wrestler who had qualified for participation in the Rio Olympics. Sushil Kumar was also preparing for the Rio Olympics, and he requested a selection trial; however, the Wrestling Federation of India and Delhi High Court dismissed his plea. During a national camp in Sonipat, Yadav was tested positive for steroids test, and he alleged that Sushil Kumar had asked a junior wrestler to lace his food with steroids. In 2019, the CBI dismissed the sabotage theory presented by Yadav. • Praveen Rana, another international wrestler, alleged that Sushil Kumar had beaten him and his brother after the selection round of the national trials in 2017. • On 4 May 2021, a wrestler of the Indian senior national camp and former junior national champion, Sagar Dhankad, was beaten to death during a clash between two groups outside the Chhatrasal stadium. In further investigation, it was found that the fight between the group took place over a rented apartment that was owned by Sushil Kumar. Later, a video surfaced from one of the assailant’s phone in which Sushil Kumar and five other people were seen assaulting Dhankad and his friends. An FIR was filed against them, and after being on the run for more than 15 days, Sushil and his partner, Ajay, were arrested in Delhi. |
| Relationships & More | |
| Marital Status | Married |
| Marriage Date | 18 February 2011 |
| Family | |
| Wife/Spouse | Savi Kumar (Tennis Player)) |
| Children | Son(s)– Suvarn and Suveer (twins born on 5 January 2014) |
| Parents | Father– Diwan Singh (driver in MTNL) Mother– Kamla Devi |
| Siblings | Brother– Amarjeet Solanki, Manjeet Solanki, Vishal Singh Solanki |
| Favourite Things | |
| Food | Paranthas, White Makhan (butter) |
| Actor | Amitabh Bachchan, Salman Khan |
Some Lesser Known Facts About Sushil Kumar
- Does Sushil Kumar smoke?: No
- Does Sushil Kumar drink alcohol?: No
- Sushil Kumar is an Indian wrestler and a two-time Olympic medal winner. He is known for his performance at various international events, and he is known for carrying the Indian flag at the opening ceremony of the 2012 London Olympics.
- Sushil Kumar enrolled himself into Satpal Singh’s akhara in Chhatrasal Stadium in Delhi when he was 13 years old. His father, Diwan Singh, and his cousin, Sandeep, were his inspiration to begin wrestling.
- He once refused to endorse a liquor brand because he thought it would send a wrong message among the country’s youth.
- Sushil Kumar won a bronze medal in Beijing Olympics in 2008 and a silver medal in the Summer Olympics 2012 in London, becoming the first person to win two Olympic medals for Independent India.
- During the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Sushil Kumar won a gold medal in the 74 kg category by defeating Qamar Abbas. The match ended in just 107 seconds, and he won the match by fall.
- During the 2018 Commonwealth Games in Australia, Sushil Kumar won a gold medal in a 74 kg event by defeating Johannes Botha in just 80 seconds.
- He is vegetarian and has campaigned for PETA’s go-vegetarian campaign.
- He loves football and is a huge fan of Lionel Messi.
- His training period in Chhatrasal Stadium, Delhi, was so bad that he had to share his room with 19 fellow trainee wrestlers.
- He is not a gadget lover and hardly carries his mobile phone.
- Sushil Kumar was invited as a guest on the Kapil Sharma show. During the show, Kapil Sharma pulled his leg asking him if he ever got distracted by girls to which Sushil Kumar replied that he only focused on wrestling. [4]
- He has a charity foundation called Sushil 4 Sports, which helps aspiring sports athletes from all fields pursue their dream of becoming professional athletes.
- He was voted as The Most Popular Athlete by the athletes of the 2010 Commonwealth Games.
- Apart from wresting, he also works in Indian Railways as an Assistant Commercial Manager. Unfortunately, after the Sagar Dhankad murder incident, Sushil Kumar was suspended from his job.
- In 2015, he co-judged the famous reality TV show MTV Roadies with Neha Dhupia, Rannvijay Singh, and Karan Kundra.