Nepali judo player Sonia Bhatt has received a wild card for the Tokyo Olympics 2020. In addition, the number of games participating in the Tokyo Olympics has reached five so far. Swimming, athletics, shooting, taekwondo and judo will compete in the Olympics. Swimming and athletics are compulsory, shooting, taekwondo (para) and judo will be represented by wild cards.
Secretary of the Nepal Olympic Committee and President of the Nepal Judo Association Deepak Harsh Bajracharya informed that Sonia will participate in the under 48 kg competition. He said that Sonia had received a wild card for taking initiative for two players Indra Bahadur Shrestha and Sonia.
Sonia, who is a member of Nepal Police, is a bronze medalist of the 13th South Asian Games recently held in Nepal. Sonia had won a gold medal in the 44 kg cadet category at the 2019 Judo Championships in Bangladesh.
Bajracharya said that he was able to get a wild card based on his performance in the World Junior Championship held in Morocco in 2019, winning a bout and collecting 200 points.
Sonia has become the fifth judoka to compete in the Olympics. Earlier, Rishi Ram Pradhan and Ganga Bahadur Dangol had participated in the 1988 Seoul Olympics from judo. Similarly, Devu Thapa and Fupulhamu Khatri participated in the Beijing Olympics and Rio Olympics respectively. ( Source Kantipur )
