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Shushila Devi Likmabam, Manipur’s 28 years old Olympian and two-time Commonwealth Games medalist in judo, has pulled out of the selection trials for the 2022 Asian Games scheduled to be held in September in China.
“I am not fully fit to compete at the Asian Games selection trials happening this week in New Delhi as it took a long time to recover from a toe injury that aggravated during the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games,” Shushila told Sportskeeda reason for skipping the national selection trials.
In Shushila’s absence Delhi’s Swaita won first place in the women’s below 48kg group. It has been nearly nine months since Shushila competed at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. After winning silver in the women’s below 48kg weight category at the 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, Sushila took a long leave and is yet to get into a competitive mood.
Sushila won silver in below 48kg at the 2014 Glasgow Commonwealth Games. She also qualified for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics through Asian quota. However, it was a challenging task for the Manipur judo player to make a big impact at the Olympic Games in Japan and lost her first-round bout.
The three-day national selection trials got underway here at the Indira Gandhi Indoor Sports Complex on Thursday (April 6) and will conclude on Saturday (April 8).
National selection trials are being held in 14 weight categories, including seven in the women’s group. The Judo Federation of India (JFI) was suspended last year for violating the 2011 National Sports Code, and national selection trials are being conducted by an ad-hoc panel.
While winners in each of the weight categories will be eligible to compete at the postponed 2022 Asian Games to be held in Hangzhou in September, the overall strength of the team will depend on clearance from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA).
“Indian judo players don’t have an impressive record at the Asian Games. Even the best of the player doesn’t reach the quarterfinal stage. So, it will all depend on the IOA, which weight category they will shortlist judo players for the Asian Games,” a national level coach said.
