12 August 2012 :: Sushil Kumar of India won Silver Medal in London Olympics – 2012 under 66Kg Wrestling Category. Sushil Kumar (Born May 26, 1983) is an Indian World Champion wrestler who won the gold medal in the 66 kg freestyle competition at the FILA 2010 World Wrestling Championships, a silver medal in the Men’s 66kg Freestyle Wrestling event at the 2012 London Olympics and a bronze medal in the Men’s 66kg Freestyle Wrestling event at the 2008 Beijing Olympics. Sushil Kumar competed against Tatsuhiro Yonemitsu of Japan in the London Olympics finals. On July 2009, he received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna – India’s highest honour for sportspersons. On 3 October 2010, Sushil Kumar was the final baton bearer who handed the Queen’s Baton to Prince Charles in the Queen’s Baton Relay for the 2010 Commonwealth Games Opening Ceremony.
Sushil Kumar belongs to a [RAVIDASSIA] family who comes from the village Baprola near Najafgarh in South West Delhi. Kumar’s father Diwan Singh was a DTC bus driver and mother Kamla Devi a housewife. He was inspired to take up wrestling by his cousin Sandeep and his father who was himself a pehlwan (wrestler). Sandeep quit wrestling as the family could only support one wrestler. Kumar trained at the akhada (wrestling school) in the Chhatrasal Stadium from the age of 14. With minimal funds and poor training facilities for wrestling in India, even for the 2008 Olympic team, his family made sure he obtained the necessary dietary supplements by sending him tinned milk, ghee and vegetables. He is a vegetarian.
Kumar is presently employed by the Indian Railways as a Assistant Commercial Manager.
