India: Olympic wrestler, Sushil Kumar, is a vegetarian

Sushil Kumar in 2010

 

An August 13, 2012 article in The Hindu by Avinash Nair states that Olympic wrestler Sushil Kumar of India, who won a silver medal, is a dedicated vegetarian.

 

The 29 year old railway employee lost his fight for the gold medal to the Japanese wrestler, Tatsuhiro Yonemitsu, but won the silver, still a major accomplishment.  He was congratulated with great enthusiasm by his compatriots, including the Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh, and the Sports Minister, Ajay Maken. Sushil has won a number of gold medals in world championships.

 

Fellow wrestler and bronze medalist, Yogeshwar Dutt, is also a vegetarian.  Both men follow the dietary program of Ryan Fernando, founder of Qua Nutrition in Bangalore and advisor at Bodyfuelz, a nutritional clinic.   Among Ryan Fernando’s special recommendations for strength and endurance in wrestling are beetroot juice and coconut water.  Nuts, bananas, and peaches also rank high on his list.

 

Since 1994, Sushil has studied wrestling at the Chhatrasal Akhara, an academy near Delhi that teaches wrestling in the traditional Indian style.  The akharas have a very long history, and teach wrestling as a spiritual discipline, a form of yoga.  Following Lord Hanuman as their patron deity, they emulate his example and are strict vegetarians.

 

 

Photo: Bill William Compton / Wikimedia Commons / This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license. / Sushil Kumar in 201

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