India’s women wrestlers have made exceptional progress in a short period of time. Medal contenders at every top-level meet these days, they have the opportunity to show how far they have come at this month’s World Championships in Budapest

It’s 6.30 a.m. and Lucknow is just about waking up. National Highway 230, which connects it to the industrial hub of Kanpur, is already busy. A lot of it has to do with the perennial traffic it caters to, but the construction of Lucknow’s metro lines and the opening of the Amausi airport to international flights have added to the chaos. 

Across the road from the airfield, however, is a sanctuary for elite athletes that shields them from it all. Crossing the huge gates of the Sports Authority of India’s regional centre here is like walking into a different world.