Tokyo 2020 Olympics : Competition for Vinesh Phogat gets tough as world champion in 55kg Jacarra Winchester moves to 53

Tokyo 2020 Olympics : Competition for Vinesh Phogat gets tough as world champion in 55kg Jacarra Winchester moves to 53

It can’t get more tougher for Vinesh Phogat. She already had wrestlers like World Champion Pak Yong Mi (North Korea), Mayu Mukaida (Japan) and Qiyanyu Pang (China) in her weight category of 53kg and now 2019 Senior World Champion in 55kg Jacarra Winchester has joined the list of challengers.

A World champ at 55 kg, which is a non-Olympic weight, Winchester was forced to decide on a new weight class for the 2020 season.“I’m going 53 kg because I was in the middle at 55,” Winchester said. “I tried different and bigger weight classes in the past. 

Winchester had been a steady presence on the Senior level for a number of years, but her breakout season came in 2018, when she made her first Senior World Team, knocking off returning 2017 World bronze medalist Becka Leathers in a domestic competition. Winchester went on to take fifth position in her Worlds debut.

In 2019, Winchester maintained her spot on top of the U.S. ladder, winning her second-straight World Team bid.

 This time, she emerged as the best in the World with a 5-3 performance against multiple-time age-group World champion Nanami Irie of Japan in the finals.

“This decision was completely up to me. I got some advice from the National Coaches, but it all comes down to knowing yourself,” she said.

 “I ultimately made the decision to go to 53 for the Olympic year once I made the World Team at 55 kg last year.