Vinesh Phogat, the Indian wrestler who had traced a challenging journey from protesting in the streets of Delhi to entering the final round in 50 kg women’s freestyle wrestling at the Paris Olympics 2024, met a heartbreak on the day of the competition.
The International Olympic Committee (IOC) disqualified her reasoning that she was overweight on the day of the match as per rules.
Here are top 10 updates about Vinesh Phogat controversy
- The wrestler who was eyeing gold was left broken, which meant her efforts failed to take home even a silver medal that the semi-final win ensured. She won semi-final bout on Tuesday night by defeating Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez with 5-0 score.
- She has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) over the issue, reported ANI.
- On Wednesday, Vinesh Phogat was set to compete against the United States’ Sarah Ann Hildebrandt for the gold medal but was disqualified for breaching the weight limit.
- The Indian Olympic contingent’s Chief Medical Officer, Dinshaw Pardiwala, revealed that the athlete exceeded the weight limit by 2.7 kg following her semi-final bout.
- Dinshaw Pardiwala further informed that efforts were made to reduce her weight by restricting her food and water intake, apart from cutting off her hair and reducing clothing size.
- The 29-year-old wrestler urged the CAS to award her the silver medal, reported ANI citing IOC insider sources. The verdict over the issue is expected to be delivered this morning.
- “Vinesh Phogat has appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) against her disqualification, asking for the silver medal. CAS will give its verdict tomorrow morning,” ANI quoted the source as saying.
- Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha expressed disappointment and shock over the player’s disqualification. While confirming that Vinesh Phogat is physically and medically fine, she pointed out that the player is disappointed. PT Usha said that the support staff is actively working to help Phogat manage her weight.
- “After hearing the news that Vinesh Phogat is disqualified, I am shocked and disappointed. I had come here to meet Vinesh; she is physically and medically okay. Mentally, she is disappointed. Our support staff is with her, trying their best to help her reduce weight,” ANI quoted PT Usha as saying.
- Following desperate measures to make the weight cut, the wrestler had to be taken to a polyclinic at the Games village due to severe dehydration. She stayed hungry for long, avoided fluids and stood awake all night to sweat the extra weight for the final round, reported PTI.
Till now, India has secured three bronze medals at the Paris Olympics, all of which are from shooting events. In a number of events where Indian athletes displayed exceptional performance, the country narrowly missed additional medals as it stood fourth in such events. These included the 10m air rifle, 25m pistol, skeet team, badminton singles, and mixed archery team events.
