Maruti Mane

Maruti Mane (10 August 1938 – 27 July 2010) was an Indian former wrestler who competed in the 1964 Summer Olympics.^[2]

Mane had a glorious run as a wrestler between 1962 and 1972 and did exceedingly well for the country in major championships. In the 1970 Commonwealth Games, he won silver in the unlimited freestyle event. In the 1962 Asian Games, he won gold in the 97 kg freestyle and the silver in the 97 kg Greco-Roman events.

Mane was crowned Hind Kesari in 1964 after defeating Rajasthan wrestler Mahiruddin. He was at one time listed among the best wrestlers in the world. He was also presented with the prestigious Dhyan Chand award by the Union government.

In his wrestling days, Mane used to work out for almost 10 to 12 hours daily. His fitness was said to be the reason for him lasting a good 11 minutes against the then all-conquering Russian wrestler Alexander Medved in 1967.^[3] No wrestler could last for more than a couple of minutes against the Medved, who was crowned world champion four times and won three Olympic golds in Tokyo (1964), Mexico (1968) and Munich (1972).

International tournaments

Medal	Year	Championship	Venue	Style	Event	Opponent	Outcome
Gold	1962	Asian Games	Jakarta, Indonesia	Freestyle	Light heavyweight 97 kg	Haruo Takagi  Japan	Winner
Silver	1962	Asian Games	Jakarta, Indonesia	Greco-Roman	Light heavyweight 97 kg	Haruo Takagi  Japan	Shared Silver

References