Kavita wrestled with her opponent from New Zealand, dressed in traditional attire.
If you don't know who Kavita Devi is, it's high time you did.
In the male dominated sport that wrestling continues to be, Kavita is a woman wrestler who is making it big.
Earlier this year, the former competitive powerlifter from Haryana became the first Indian woman to compete in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The South Asian Games gold medal winner was selected to compete in the Mae Young Classic, which is the first ever WWE tournament for women.
And now, a video of the wrestler fighting in a salwar-kurta has gone viral.
Kavita is seen in an orange salwar kurta with a dupatta tied around her waist as she fights her opponent, New Zealand's Dakota Kai, at the Mae Young Classic tournament.
And while Kavita did not win the match, praises have been pouring in for her from far and wide for putting up a great fight.
In an interview to Sports Keeda recently, Kavita spoke, among other things, about wanting to inspire more Indian women to take up wrestling.
"I think it's possible. If you saw me wrestle, I wrestled in traditional Indian attire. Representing Indian culture is very important. My very objective of going there was to pave the path for other Indian girls to go to WWE and ensure that they don't face any obstacles along the way. I wanted to show Indian girls that you do not need the kind of ring gear worn by international performers, to compete at such a level," she said.
While Kavita comments might appear 'moralistic', what she's referring to is actually a practical solution. Many girls are asked to stay away from sports because their families are not comfortable with them wearing the attire that's usually worn by international players. Especially if the sport is considered to be a "manly" one like wrestling.
"I competed at a very high level, in our traditional dress. Girls have been very inspired by my performance. In the coming months, you'll see that girls are lining up to join the CWE Academy in Jalandhar (a city in India's Punjab state). The more people it reaches, the more girls will be impressed and want to travel down this road and make their own mark," she added.
(Source: TNM)
If you don't know who Kavita Devi is, it's high time you did.
In the male dominated sport that wrestling continues to be, Kavita is a woman wrestler who is making it big.
Earlier this year, the former competitive powerlifter from Haryana became the first Indian woman to compete in the World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). The South Asian Games gold medal winner was selected to compete in the Mae Young Classic, which is the first ever WWE tournament for women.
And now, a video of the wrestler fighting in a salwar-kurta has gone viral.
Kavita is seen in an orange salwar kurta with a dupatta tied around her waist as she fights her opponent, New Zealand's Dakota Kai, at the Mae Young Classic tournament.
And while Kavita did not win the match, praises have been pouring in for her from far and wide for putting up a great fight.
In an interview to Sports Keeda recently, Kavita spoke, among other things, about wanting to inspire more Indian women to take up wrestling.
"I think it's possible. If you saw me wrestle, I wrestled in traditional Indian attire. Representing Indian culture is very important. My very objective of going there was to pave the path for other Indian girls to go to WWE and ensure that they don't face any obstacles along the way. I wanted to show Indian girls that you do not need the kind of ring gear worn by international performers, to compete at such a level," she said.
While Kavita comments might appear 'moralistic', what she's referring to is actually a practical solution. Many girls are asked to stay away from sports because their families are not comfortable with them wearing the attire that's usually worn by international players. Especially if the sport is considered to be a "manly" one like wrestling.
"I competed at a very high level, in our traditional dress. Girls have been very inspired by my performance. In the coming months, you'll see that girls are lining up to join the CWE Academy in Jalandhar (a city in India's Punjab state). The more people it reaches, the more girls will be impressed and want to travel down this road and make their own mark," she added.
(Source: TNM)
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