Sujeet Kalkal Mounts 9-2 Comeback to Claim 65kg Asian Games Wrestling Gold

Down seven points with one minute and forty seconds left on the clock, the 65kg Asian Games gold medal looked entirely out of reach. Indian freestyle wrestler Sujeet Kalkal was trailing Tajikistan's Abdulmazhid Kudiev 9-2 on the mat at the Nagoya City Inae Sports Center. The 23-year-old needed a miracle to survive.[1][3]

Kalkal launched a relentless late assault, chaining together three rapid takedowns to carve Kudiev's advantage down to a single point. With the Tajik wrestler desperately trying to run down the clock, Kalkal struck one final time. He secured a two-point takedown with just 11 seconds remaining to snatch a 10-9 victory.[1][3]

"I felt a bit of pressure, but I had to manage it. That's how you become a champion," Kalkal said after the match. His ability to chain his offense without resetting allowed him to exploit Kudiev's fading stamina, turning a defensive shell into a scoring clinic.[1]

The dramatic comeback secured India's first wrestling gold medal of the 2026 Games, erasing the bitter memory of a zero-gold campaign at the 2023 edition in Hangzhou. It also cemented Kalkal's status as the undisputed heir to a weight class historically dominated by Olympic medalists Yogeshwar Dutt and Bajrang Punia.[3]

"Sujeet did well to hold his position as the Japanese went on the attack in the last few moments," Indian national coach Kuldeep Singh Sehrawat told reporters, reflecting on the grueling path to the final. "I think this is the biggest win of his career."[3]

Slaying the Olympic Champion

Before he could engineer his gold-medal miracle, Kalkal had to survive a semifinal gauntlet against Japan's Kotaro Kiyooka, the reigning Paris 2024 Olympic champion. Kiyooka, wrestling on home soil, took a 2-0 lead into the second period via an activity point and a stepout.[2]

Kalkal responded with a crucial go-behind takedown to level the score and take the criteria advantage. In the frantic final 30 seconds, Kiyooka desperately hunted for an opening, driving Kalkal to the edge of the mat. Kalkal executed a last-second counter as both men sailed out of bounds.[2]

The bout ended in a 3-3 tie, but Kalkal advanced to the final on criteria because he scored the highest-value move. The loss handed Kiyooka a stunning defeat in front of a partisan Nagoya crowd and set up Kalkal's rematch with Kudiev.[1][2]

The road to Friday's podium was paved with sheer technical superiority in the early rounds. Kalkal opened his tournament by dismantling Afghanistan's Sayed Omar Zazai 13-3, recovering instantly after dropping the first three points. He followed that with a flawless 10-0 shutout over Iran's Abbas Ebrahimzadehsavadkouhi.[1]

Japan Dominates Women's Divisions

While Kalkal stole the show in the men's freestyle bracket, the Japanese women's team continued its absolute stranglehold on the sport. Four-time world champion and Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Yui Susaki captured the 50kg title in her Asian Games debut, obliterating DPR Korea's Kim Song Hyang 10-0.[2]

Susaki did not surrender a single point throughout the one-day competition, winning her semifinal by fall in a blistering 38 seconds. "It's the first Asian Games of my career and with the plus of being in my home country, I definitely wanted to be here," Susaki said following the victory.[2]

At 76kg, Paris Olympic champion Yuka Kagami made a triumphant return to international competition following a post-Olympics hiatus. Shrugging off a recent knee injury, Kagami defeated Kazakhstan's Elmira Syzdykova 5-1 to claim her first Asian Games gold, keeping Japan perfect in the heavier weight class.[2][4]

The victories by Susaki and Kagami gave host nation Japan four gold medals out of four through the first three days of women's competition. The sheer depth of the Japanese roster continues to present an insurmountable wall for the rest of the continent.[2]

Meanwhile, the men's heavyweight division saw Iranian powerhouse Amir Hossein Zare survive a massive scare in the 125kg semifinals. Zare trailed Kazakhstan's Yedige Kassimbek 3-1 in the dying moments before securing a takedown with under five seconds left, advancing on a 3-3 criteria tiebreaker.[2]

A New Era at 65kg

For Kalkal, the Nagoya triumph caps a flawless 2026 campaign that includes the U23 World Championship and the senior Asian Championship. The 23-year-old has now proven he can navigate both tactical, low-scoring chess matches against Olympic champions and chaotic, high-scoring brawls.[1][3]

The 65kg division is notoriously unforgiving, demanding a blend of explosive speed and unbreakable cardio. By erasing a seven-point deficit in under two minutes against a world-class opponent, Kalkal demonstrated a physical gas tank that few wrestlers on the international circuit can match.[3]

As the international wrestling calendar pivots toward the Senior World Championships in Astana later this month, Kalkal has firmly painted a target on his back. He arrived in Japan as a rising prospect, but he leaves as the definitive man to beat.[2]