Seema Bisla: The girl with never-say-die attitude

Seema Bisla is strong-willed. It’s the demand of her craft. Every time the wrestler has faced setbacks in her career, belief in her abilities egged her on. The reward of that never-say-die attitude: A ticket to the Tokyo Olympics.

Yet in April, the situation was so different for Bisla. She failed to make the cut at the Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament in Almaty, Kazakhstan. At the same venue, a few days later, she bounced back with a bronze at the Asian Championship – her first medal at the continental level.

Her qualification now depended on one last shot – World Qualifiers in Sofia, Bulgaria earlier this month. Bisla left nothing on the mat as she sealed her qualification spot.

“I was sure of getting a ticket to Tokyo even after failing to impress at the Asian Olympic Qualification Tournament in Almaty. My confidence grew when I won a bronze at the Asian Wrestling Championship,” said Bisla.

“It’s just the beginning for me and I am sure of getting a medal in Tokyo. I have been preparing well. Besides, paying special attention to my skills, I am more focused on my stamina. It’s my best weapon,” she said from her training centre in Jharsa, Gurgaon.

At the Qualifiers in Sofia, Bisla started her campaign with a thumping 8-0 win over Anastasiya Yanotava of Belarus. She had another crushing victory over Emma Jonna Denise Malmgren of Sweden. Bisla was leading 10-2 when a brilliant counter saw her pin down Malmgren. The semi-final against reigning European Championships silver medallist Anna Lukasiak was the final frontier, and Bisla showed her defensive side winning 2-1.

It was a moment of triumph for Bisla who has shifted to several weight categories after starting at 67kg in her junior days. She settled for 53kg but went a rung below 50kg in 2018 when Vinesh Phogat moved up to 53kg. She won gold in Yasar Dogu Ranking series in 2019 and silver medal in Spain Grand Prix.

It has been a long road for Bisla who started her career with a bronze medal at the 2009 Asian Cadet Championships in Pune. She then had back-to-back bronze medals at the 2012 and 2013 Asian Junior Championships but could find her feet in the senior level late in her career.

Growing up in Gudhan village in Rohtak, Bisla was introduced to the sport by her father Azad Singh but she had to battle tough financial conditions at home to keep her passion burning. She trained in academy in Rohtak before she found a good mentor in Paramjeet Singh in 2017 and trained under him in Gurgaon.

“If you have a good teacher, you can achieve anything. I am the perfect example of this. Whatever I am today is because of my coach,” she said.

She has been regularly training with male wrestlers to increase her power. “It was coach sir’s idea to prepare me against the boys in the heavyweight category and this helped me emerge stronger against the women wrestlers in my own category,” she said.

Bouncing back from adversities has become a way of life for Bisla. There was a time when she wanted to give up sport with the financial burden as it was increasingly becoming tough for her to make ends meet. Her sister’s support helped her continue with wrestling. Her coach Singh also motivated Bisla and helped her get a job in Indian Railways in 2017.

Bisla’s family encourages her to pursue wrestling despite the challenges. She can now see the effort she has put all these years and family’s support have given her the result. “I really wish to win a medal for India and for my family too as their contribution to every effort of mine is special,” she said.

She had missed out on a berth at the World Championships in 2019, losing her second round in repechage but that only made her more determined. She is now gearing up for the Ranking Series at Poland next month.

“It would be a good opportunity to test my skills. Since the day I qualified for the Tokyo Games, I have been dreaming of success all the time and the Poland meet would show me where I stand before the Olympics,” said Bisla.

Her coach is also confident that his trainee will bring home a medal from Tokyo. “Her ability to maintain stamina is amazing. Now, she is a much-improved wrestler with her defence and her ability to counter off defence. I am sure of her making India proud by winning a medal at Tokyo,” said Paramjeet Singh.