Journeywoman Suchika Tariyal confirms Asian Games MMA medal at 36 - The Indian Express
Suchika Tariyal took down Mongolia’s Altanchimeg Baigalmaa 2-0 to enter the semifinals of the women’s traditional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) 60kg and confirm at least a bronze medal for India at the Asian Games.
The 36-year-old has been a kind of journeywoman, transitioning from judo to kurash to ju-jitsu to mixed martial arts now. “I have been playing combat sports for many years. However, MMA is a new game for me,” said Suchika after her win.
Suchika used the learnings from her formative days against the Mongolian opponent. “I just planned my game as per my coach’s instructions. My gameplan will be the same going forward — same takedown, ground and pound, and finish the fight through a submission or lock. That’s the strategy going forward as per my sir’s instruction,” she said.
Suchika, who is good at ground and pound, stuck to her strengths on Sunday and that is largely due to her early days as a judoka. “I started judo as I wanted to learn combat sports. Judo gave me the base to do other combat sports,” she said.
While she is going on the ground, Suchika needs to sharpen her skills of striking and kicking. “They said my ground and pound was good, but I needed to work on my striking, on kicking and boxing,” Suchika had told The Indian Express before leaving for Japan.
As a 12-year-old, Suchika picked up judo after an eve-teasing incident at a unisex salon left her helpless. “I went to a unisex salon and the barber touched me inappropriately,” Suchika had told this paper earlier in an interview. “I felt that I should have something for my own defence. I should have some fighting skills with which I can fight back.”
A few months later, she joined judo classes at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, close to the government quarters where she lived. Before she knew it, Suchika began winning age-group medals and, within a few years, became a junior national medallist. She went on to become an eight-time national champion in judo.
This is not the first sport where she is representing India in a multi-sporting event. Earlier, she represented India in judo at the Commonwealth Games 2022 and kurash at the 2023 Asian Games.
However, this is her first medal in her third attempt at a multi-sporting event. Making its debut at the continental showpiece, women’s traditional MMA 60kg combines striking, takedowns, grappling and ground fighting, with athletes competing in the under-60kg category. The winner is decided by points, submission or stoppage, and reaching the semifinals guarantees a medal, with both losing semifinalists receiving bronze.
Before heading to Aichi-Nagoya, Suchika trained in Mumbai under Nikhi Kunder, who is also the president of MMA-SFI, the national body looking after the sport in the country.
“I had a six-week camp at One Punch gym in Mumbai under Nikhil sir and also at Evolution Gym. Nikhil sir has supported me throughout this journey. His students at the gym also helped me a lot. During sparring sessions, they made sure I stayed fit and didn’t get injured. Overall, it was a great experience,” she said.
