Ahmedabad, October 29, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Sabhai Gadhvi, a kabaddi player from Mota Bhadia village in Gujarat’s Kutch district, has made history by becoming the first woman from the state to earn a place in the Indian women’s team. She is now competing at the Commonwealth Kabaddi Championship 2026 in Ahmedabad, where India have reached the semi-finals.
Gadhvi, who has also been named Best Defender in one of the matches, is part of the championship being held from October 23 to 31. Her selection is the culmination of years of training and performances at state and national-level competitions.
Her journey began at Mota Bhadia Primary School No. 2, where principal Mayur Joshi and teacher Haresh Pandya identified her talent and prepared her for competitions, including the state government’s Khel Mahakumbh.
After primary school, she joined Navjivan Vidyalaya in Morbi and trained under coaches Vijaykumar Chaudhary and Narsinh Rabari. Her school team finished fourth at the state-level Khel Mahakumbh in Vadodara in 2016 and improved to second place at the Bhavnagar competition the following year.
In 2018, Gadhvi secured the first rank across Gujarat in the District Level Sports School (DLSS) examination conducted by the Sports Authority of Gujarat. She underwent training under the scheme from 2018 to 2022 before being selected for the Centre of Excellence programme in 2022 on the strength of her performances and national-level medals.
In 2024, she joined the Sports Authority of India’s National Centre of Excellence in Gandhinagar, where she continues to train.
Her medal record includes bronze in the Under-14 and gold in the Under-17 categories at Khel Mahakumbh, besides an Under-19 gold at the School Games Federation of India competition. She has also won gold medals in state-level sub-junior and senior events and attended the Indian training camp for the 20th Asian Games.
Officials said her rise from a village school playground to the international championship reflected the contribution of grassroots sports programmes in identifying and developing talent.
India’s women’s team has secured a semi-final place, with its next match awaited.
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