India's Wrestling Legacy
Late Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav
(The First Individual Olympic Medallist from India) Helsinki Olympics 1952- From the era of Ramayana and Mahabharata to the present day, wrestling has held a special place in Indian culture.
- Out of India's 24 individual Olympic medals, 8 medals have been won in wrestling alone.
- Maharashtra has a rich wrestling tradition with akhadas in every village.
- In 1952, Maharashtra's legendary wrestler Late Khashaba Dadasaheb Jadhav won India's first individual Olympic medal – a bronze medal at the Helsinki Olympics.
- From 1896 to 1996, for a century of Olympic history, this remained India's only individual Olympic medal.
- Until 1972, many wrestlers from Maharashtra represented India in Asian and Olympic Games. But with the evolution of modern techniques and scientific nutrition in wrestling, Maharashtra fell behind. As a result, for more than 55 years, not a single wrestler from Maharashtra has qualified for the Olympics.
Our Beginning
To take talented yet economically underprivileged wrestlers from Maharashtra to the Olympic Games, we established Dream Foundation in 2006.
Through the Foundation, we developed Janta Raja Wrestling Centre on a 2-acre campus at Lonikand near Pune.
Over the last 20 years, the centre has produced numerous National and International wrestlers.
Mission Olympics Program
Dream Foundation launched the Mission Olympics initiative in 2022, with the goal of preparing wrestlers for the 2032 and 2036 Olympic Games. The mission operates through three major programs:Monthly Scholarship Scheme
Providing monthly financial assistance for a healthy diet and training to 120 talented wrestlers from economically weaker farming and marginalized families across Maharashtra.
CURRENT STATUSDream Foundation is presently supporting 70 wrestlers with a monthly financial assistance of 3 lakh.
Wrestler Adoption Program
Identifying exceptionally talented wrestlers from underprivileged backgrounds and adopting them into the Janta Raja Wrestling Centre, where they receive:
- Scientific wrestling training
- Professional coaching
- Nutritious diet
- Free accommodation
- Complete sports development support
CURRENT STATUS15 wrestlers are currently adopted under this program.
International Training Program
To prepare elite wrestlers for Olympic-level competition, Dream Foundation will sponsor international training camps by covering the complete cost of overseas training and exposure.
LAUNCHThis program will be launched in 2027.
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