Wrestler Bajrang Punia 'disappointed' to miss out on gold medal, sets sights on Paris Olympics

Grappler Bajrang Punia might have won a bronze medal in the Tokyo Olympics but the Indian wrestler is "disappointed" and wants to focus on bringing gold in Paris 2024.

Bajrang won a bronze medal in the men's freestyle 65kg category after defeating Kazakhstan's Daulet Niyazbekov on Saturday. He defeated Niyazbekov 8-0 in the bronze medal match.

"I want to thank everyone for their prayer, love, and support as I could win a medal in Olympics. I also want to thank the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) and supporting staff," Bajrang Punia said.

"I'm disappointed that I couldn't win the gold medal but I'll try to win it in Paris Olympics in 2024," he added.

In the match between Punia and Niyazbekov, the former went on to take 2-0 lead in the first period and all the pressure was on the Kazakh opponent heading into the last three minutes.

In the final three minutes, Bajrang managed to hold his own and he kept his opponent at bay walking away with a bronze medal.

( With inputs from ANI )

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