Geeta Kumari Phogat is an Indian freestyle wrestler from Haryana, best known for becoming the first Indian woman wrestler to qualify for the Summer Olympic Games and the first to win a gold medal at the Commonwealth Games in wrestling. She is the eldest daughter of wrestling coach Mahavir Singh Phogat, whose effort to train his daughters in the sport formed the basis of the 2016 Hindi-language film Dangal.
| Full name | Geeta Kumari Phogat |
|---|---|
| Born | 15 December 1988, Balali, Bhiwani district, Haryana, India |
| Sport | Freestyle wrestling |
| Weight category | 55 kg / 51 kg / 53 kg (varied across career) |
| Coach | Mahavir Singh Phogat (father) |
| Spouse | Pawan Kumar Saroha (wrestler) |
| Notable family | Babita Kumari (sister), Vinesh Phogat (cousin), Ritu Phogat (sister), Sangita Phogat (sister) |
| Major honour | Commonwealth Games gold (2010); Olympic qualification (2012) |
Geeta Phogat was born on 15 December 1988 in the village of Balali in Bhiwani district (now Charkhi Dadri district) of Haryana. She belongs to a Jat family with a strong tradition of kushti (traditional wrestling). Her father, Mahavir Singh Phogat, a former amateur wrestler and recipient of the Dronacharya Award, began training her and her sister Babita Kumari in wrestling at an early age, at a time when women's participation in the sport was uncommon in rural Haryana. The training was conducted in informal akharas in Balali, often facing local social opposition.
Geeta competed in domestic tournaments through the late 2000s, winning medals at national-level competitions and gradually moving into international competition under the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI).
At the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in Delhi, Geeta won the gold medal in the women's 55 kg freestyle category, becoming the first Indian woman to win a Commonwealth Games gold in wrestling. She defeated Emily Bensted of Australia in the final.
At the FILA World Wrestling Championships held in 2012 in Strathcona County, Canada, Geeta won a bronze medal in the 55 kg category. Earlier she became the first Indian female wrestler to qualify for the Olympic Games, having earned a quota place for the 2012 London Olympics. At the London Olympics she competed in the women's 55 kg freestyle event but was eliminated in the early rounds.
Geeta continued to represent India at international meets including the Asian Wrestling Championships and Commonwealth Wrestling Championships. She won a silver medal at the 2012 Commonwealth Wrestling Championships and medals at the Asian level. Her competitive appearances reduced in the latter half of the 2010s as she focused on coaching and family life.
Geeta married Pawan Kumar Saroha, a wrestler from Haryana, in November 2016 in Charkhi Dadri. She has been associated with the Haryana Police as a Deputy Superintendent of Police under the state's policy of providing government posts to leading sportspersons.
Geeta Phogat's career marked a turning point for women's wrestling in India. Her qualification for the 2012 Olympics and her gold at the 2010 Commonwealth Games drew widespread attention to women's freestyle wrestling and inspired a generation of female wrestlers from Haryana, including her sisters Babita Kumari, Ritu Phogat and Sangita Phogat, and her cousins Vinesh Phogat and Priyanka Phogat. The Phogat family's story was dramatised in the 2016 film Dangal, directed by Nitesh Tiwari and produced by Aamir Khan Productions, with Aamir Khan portraying Mahavir Singh Phogat and Fatima Sana Shaikh portraying the elder Geeta. The film became one of the highest-grossing Indian films and brought international recognition to the family.