Shivraj Rakshe won the Maharashtra Kesari wrestling championship by defeating Mahendra Gaikwad at the 65th Maharashtra Kesari Wrestling Championship on Saturday at the Mamasaheb Mohol Sports Centre near Vanaz. Rakshe, from Nanded, defeated Gaikwad, from Solapur, by pinning him down in under a minute and won the contest ‘by fall’. Both wrestlers began passively before Rakshe gained the upper hand. Both wrestlers are trained at Kaka Pawar’s talim in Ambegaon, Katraj, by Kaka Pawar and Govind Pawar.
“Both wrestlers have put in a lot of effort over the last year. It was my dream to see both wrestlers from my talim compete in the final. Even the 2020 final was contested by wrestlers trained by me,” Kaka Pawar enthused.The winner received a jeep and a ₹5 lakh cash prize, while the runner-up received a tractor and a ₹2.5 lakh cash prize. Bhushan, Brij Sharan Singh, President of the Wrestling Federation of India, who attended the prestigious event, suggested that Maharashtra Kesari be held for women as well and that the deputy chief minister consider it.
Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav of Maharashtra was the first Indian to win a bronze medal in the 1952 Summer Olympics, but there is a significant gap after that. In the coming days, I hope to see a number of Maharashtra medal winners,” Singh said. Reacting to the proposal, Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis said once the Maharashtra Kushtigir Parishad puts forward plans for women Maharashtra Kesari, we will support it.