New Delhi: Olympic bronze medallist Sakshi Malik stunned reigning world champion Petra Olli of Finland to enter the finals of the female 65g category freestyle at the Dan Kolov 2019 wrestling meet in Ruse, Bulgaria on Thursday.
The Indian grappler beat Olli, who won silver at the 2015 World Championships in the 58kg category and gold in the 65kg division in 2018, 4-1 in the semifinals.
“The last few bouts where I had to face defeat were very close affairs. Every time, it was just a matter of few seconds here and there,” she said.
Malik insisted that she is determined to win another Olympic medal.
“Winning another Olympic medal is my dream and I am completely focused on that,” she said. “But before that, there is the world championships where I have to perform well to qualify for the Tokyo Games. I am really happy with my fitness and training at the moment and I am sure, I will be able to make my dream a reality in Tokyo next year.”
Sakshi will next meet Henna Johansson of Sweden in the gold-medal clash Friday.
PTI
