Eve-teased at 12, Asian Games history at 36: Suchika Tariyal's MMA fairytale
For every sportsperson, there is a turning point that starts their journey. For Suchika Tariyal, it was an eve-teasing incident at the age of 12.
Suchika used the horrific experience as an inspiration for her to take up judo and the rest, as they say, is history. She has represented India at many international competitions in judo, but today she stands in front of the world as India's first MMA medallist at the Asian Games.
ASIAN GAMES 2026, SEPT 20 UPDATESWHO IS SUCHIKA TARIYAL?
Suchika's sporting journey began at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium before she moved to the Dada Dev Mandir Centre in Palam and later trained at the Sports Authority of India (SAI) centre in Bhopal. Her decision to pursue sport was not always easy, with her family initially concerned about the challenges of a young girl travelling for competitions.
Those hurdles did little to slow her progress. Suchika eventually became an established international judoka, competing for India at more than 20 international events. She went on to win the National Judo Championship eight times and collected several medals on the international stage.
Among her biggest achievements in judo were gold medals at the 2019 Commonwealth Judo Championships and the 2019 South Asian Games, along with a silver at the 2018 Commonwealth Judo Championships. She also featured at multiple Asian Judo Championships before representing India at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. Competing in the women's -57kg category, she came close to a podium finish but returned with valuable experience from one of the biggest stages in the sport.
Her combat sports journey did not stop with judo. Suchika later took up Ju-Jitsu and reached another career milestone in 2024, winning gold in the Adults Ju-Jitsu Contact Female -63kg category at the JJIF Ju-Jitsu World Championships. Her achievements in both disciplines eventually became the building blocks for her move into MMA.
Interestingly, MMA was not entirely new territory for Suchika. She made her debut in the sport in 2017 and began her journey with a victory, but then stepped away from MMA for seven years as she continued to compete and succeed in judo and Ju-Jitsu.
She returned to professional MMA towards the end of 2024 after signing a multi-fight deal with BRAVE Combat Federation in the women's strawweight division. Her comeback fight came at BRAVE CF 92 in Bahrain in December 2024, where she marked her return with another victory.
Away from competition, Suchika has also built a career in public service. She was appointed a Head Constable with the CISF before later joining the Department of Sports, Haryana, as a Junior Coach.WHEN SUCHIKA ALMOST QUIT SPORTS
A knee injury, systemic barriers and personal struggles forced Suchika away from judo. The 36-year-old had come to peace with the fact that her journey was over.
“I had given up. I thought, ‘Alright, it’s fine, it’s done, this is enough,” Tariyal told HT.
But then, Pooja Tomar and ONE championship fighter Himanshu Kaushik brought her back into the competition.
Suchika had already competed for India at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in judo and the 2023 Asian Games in kurash before adding another major achievement to her resume as a Jiu-Jitsu World Champion in 2024. But just as she appeared to be building a clear path across combat sports, a series of administrative changes began reshaping her options.
The biggest setback came in January, when the jiu-jitsu team for the 2026 Asian Games was scrapped and the selection structure was altered. For Suchika, it meant that the route she had been working towards suddenly disappeared.
Rather than step away, she switched disciplines once again and entered the MMA trials.
Even making the Asian Games qualification pathway proved difficult. The eligibility criteria were changed midway through the process, with athletes now required to break into the top six in the Asian rankings. With no immediate government funding available for the trip, Suchika financed her own journey to the Asian Championships.
The gamble paid off. She returned from the championships with two bronze medals for India, strengthening her case during the selection process. The performance eventually helped her clear the administrative hurdles, earn a place in the Target Asian Games scheme and secure support from the MMA-SFI federation.advertisementSUCHIKA'S MOMENT OF GREATNESSSuchika Tariyal etched her name in Indian MMA history on Sunday, booking a place in the women’s traditional -60kg semifinals at the 2026 Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan.
The 36-year-old secured at least a bronze medal after producing a 2-0 quarterfinal victory over Mongolia’s Altanchimeg Baigalmaa. Her semifinal opponent will be decided by the other quarterfinal between Singapore’s Hui Hoon Teo and Iran’s Arezou Salimighalehtaki.
With a spot in the last four secured, Tariyal is now one win away from reaching the Asian Games final and improving the colour of her historic medal.- EndsPublished By: alan johnPublished On: Sep 20, 2026 12:11 IST
