Deepak Punia and Surjit Karakal’s chances of qualifying for the Paris Olympics have hit a snag as two Kyrgyzstan-bound Indian wrestlers were stranded at Dubai International Airport due to unprecedented rains in the Gulf state. Deepak (86kg) and Surjit (65kg), who were close to winning medals at the Tokyo Olympics, are heading to Bishkek to participate in the Asian Olympics qualifiers, the penultimate qualifiers for the Paris Olympics. Friday. However, two people were stranded at Dubai Airport after the country experienced some of the worst rainfall on record, flooding major highways and roads and throwing one of the world’s busiest airports into chaos.

The pair, accompanied by Russian coach Kamal Malikov and physio Shubham Gupta, were forced to sleep on the floor and were denied proper food due to the rain-induced crisis.

Deepak and Surjit will weigh in at 8 am on Friday, while the fight is scheduled for later in the day.

“They have been stuck at Dubai Airport since April 16 and it seems their chance of qualifying for the Paris Olympics has slipped through their hands as they are scheduled to compete tomorrow. They do not have any flights to Bishkek. I am worried about them,” Surjit’s father Dayanand Kalakal told PTI.

Deepak and Surjit were training in Dagestan, Russia, from April 2 to 15 and decided to fly from Makachkala to Bishkek via Dubai.

The last chance to get into Paris is the World Qualifiers in Turkey in May.