Yogeshwar Dutt: Former mud wrestler gripped by Olympic dream

Today, Dutt is warming up inside the Chaudhary Devi Lal Stadium complex tumbling across a padded floor in preparation for some training bouts overseen by his coach.

The vast gymnasium in the town of Sonipat, a few miles north of New Delhi has become a center of excellence for Indian wrestling in recent times with the 32-year-old becoming one of the country’s most celebrated mat men.

It might be easy to attribute his success — Dutt is a double Commonwealth Games champion and an Olympic bronze medalist — to his impressive, muscle-bound physique, but wrestling isn’t just about throwing your weight around, he argues. It’s also requires brain power.

“Wrestling is very different compared to other sports. It requires equal use of power as well as equal use of mind,” Dutt told CNN’s Human to Hero series.

Achieving a podium at the Olympics — India won just six medals in 2012 — has earned Dutt a degree of personal fame in his homeland and with other perks.

In 2012 his local government in Haryana awarded him cash and land following his Olympic success and the following year he was recognized on a national level when he was the recipient of a Padma Shri, India’s fourth highest civilian award.

His sights are now firmly set on preparing for one final push for Olympic gold in Rio next year.

“Now that I have won gold at the Asian Games, I will try to win gold at the Olympics and dedicate it to my father,” he said.

CNN