Yogeshwar Dutt’s Journey from Haryana to Olympics – The Inspiration Wrestlers Need

By Swati Chandra Sep 1 2021 12:05PM
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Yogeshwar Dutt is an Indian wrestler and the third Indian to win an Olympic medal in wrestling. Dutt’s life journey from Haryana to Olympics is inspiring beating all odds against him.

Yogeshwar Dutt – The Wrestler who Won an Olympic Medal After Losing

Yogeshwar is a freestyle wrestler who hails from India and is one of those few wrestlers from India who has won a medal in the Olympics. Yogeshwar has been honored with several awards from the Government of India for his outstanding performance in sports. He is one of those people who has made our country proud by winning several medals at the international level. Let's get to know the story of this excellent man who has shown his capability to the entire world.

Fun Fact: Balraj Pehlwan is Dutt's idol and inspiration.

Yogeshwar Dutt Wiki – Statistics

  • Full Name - Yogeshwar Dutt
  • Nickname – Yogi, Pehelwan Ji
  • Date of Birth - 2 November 1982 (38 years)
  • Place of Birth - Bhainswal Kalan, Sonipat District, Haryana
  • Country - India
  • Sport - Freestyle Wrestling
  • Events - 55 kg/ 60 kg/ 65 kg
  • Height - 5 ft 5 in
  • Weight - 60 kg
  • Zodiac Sign - Scorpio
  • Marital Status -Married
  • Spouse - Sheetal Sharma

Yogeshwar Dutt Bio – Early Life

Yogeshwar Dutt was born in the small village of Haryana. His childhood was full of struggles and, he didn't have proper necessaries to fulfill his living. He started wrestling at a very young age of 6 years from coach Ramphal. Dutt was born to Ram Mehar Dutt and Sushila Devi and had one sibling Mukesh Dutt and, he is married to Sheetal Sharma. Dutt and Sheetal have a son, Yogi Yogeshwar Dutt.

He started participating in various district, state, and national level games. Dutt was a champion.

Fun Fact: - Dutt is only the 3rd Indian wrestler to win a medal in the Olympics.

Yogeshwar Dutt Biography – Career

  • Asian Games - Asian Games 2006 was extremely tough for Yogeshwar as he had to go through both physical and mental trauma. His father died just a few days before his tournament and, he also had a knee injury. But despite all these difficulties, Dutt won a bronze medal for his country in the 60 kg category. In the Asian Games 2014, Yogeshwar Dutt managed to win a gold medal by defeating Zalimkhan Yusupov of Tajikistan in the 65 kg category.
  • Asian Championship - Dutt managed to win a gold medal in the 2008 and 2012 Asian Championship. He participated in the 60 kg freestyle category and showed his best performance in both of the events.
  • Commonwealth Games - Dutt had just recovered from a severe knee injury before the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Nevertheless, he managed to win a gold medal for India by defeating in the 60 kg category. In the 2014 Commonwealth Games, Dutt beat Jevon Balfour of Canada in the 65 kg freestyle category to win a gold medal.
  • Pro Wrestling League - Dutt has also been a part of the Pro Wrestling League (PWL) held in 2015 in six Indian cities. He was in the team of Haryana Hammers in the icon category.

Fun Fact: Yogeshwar Dutt got posted as the DSP in Haryana Police.

Yogeshwar Dutt Story – Olympics

  • Olympics 2012 London - This was a special event for Yogeshwar Dutt. He won a bronze medal in the men's 60 kg freestyle category by defeating Ri Jong Myong of North Korea. He clinched the bronze medal in just 1:02 minutes, playing exceptionally well.
  • Olympics 2016 Rio - 2016 Rio Olympics was not good for Yogeshwar as he failed to win any medal for his country. He participated in the 65 kg freestyle category and got knocked out in the qualifying round. Dutt lost to Ganzorigiin Mandakhnaran of Mongolia to 3-0.

Yogeshwar Dutt – Success Medals

Dutt has been a champion since his childhood. He has won more than 50 medals at the National and International levels. Some of the medals won by him are as follows:

  • Gold - Asian Games, Incheon, 2014, 65 kg freestyle
  • Gold - Commonwealth Games, Delhi, 2010, 65 kg freestyle
  • Gold - Commonwealth Games, Glasgow, 2014, 65 kg freestyle
  • Gold - Asian Championship, Jeju City, 2008, 60 kg freestyle
  • Gold - Commonwealth Championship, London, 2003, 55 kg freestyle
  • Gold - Commonwealth Championship, Cape Town, 2005, 60 kg, freestyle
  • Gold - Commonwealth Championship. London, 2007, 60 kg freestyle
  • Silver - Commonwealth Championship, Cape Town, 2005, 60 kg Greco-Roman
  • Silver - Commonwealth Championship, London, 2007, 60 kg Greco-Roman
  • Bronze - Olympics, London, 2012, 60 kg freestyle
  • Bronze - Asian Games, Doha, 2006, 60 kg freestyle

Yogeshwar Dutt – Awards and Achievements

Some of the awards and achievements of Yogeshwar Dutt are as follows:

  • Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award - By the Government of India, 2012
  • Padma Shri - Government of India, 2013
  • 10 million cash reward - By the Government of Haryana
  • Car - From a PSU bank

Yogeshwar Dutt Success Story – Political Career

Yogeshwar calls him a true nationalist and, he loves to serve his nation in every possible way. It made him join Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP) in 2019. He is an active member of the party.

Being an athlete, Dutt knows the actual requirements of the people and their needs. He recently lost to Congress's Induraj Narwal for the Baroda seat in Haryana by over 9,200 votes.

Yogeshwar Dutt Biography – Fans and Following

Yogeshwar is one of the most popular wrestlers in India. He is also quite active on his various social media accounts. Yogeshwar posts things related to his personal life, training, fitness, matches, etc., on his account.

He has almost 300 thousand followers on Instagram and more than 3.6 million followers on Twitter.

Note: Yogeshwar trains for 6 hours every day, and wrestler Sushil Kumar is one of his close friends.

Yogeshwar Dutt - Pehelwan Ji of India

Dutt is one of those rare gems of India who has made his country proud. This man is a true inspiration for all the budding wrestlers who wanted to achieve something on the international platform. Dutt's life journey is full of inspiration and, there is a lot to learn from it. He is an idol for thousands of people in India and, he has a massive impact on the youngsters.