In a shocking turn of events, Vinesh Phogat was on Wednesday disqualified from the Paris Olympics after being found overweight ahead of her women’s 50kg final.
Vinesh had scripted history by becoming the first Indian woman wrestler to reach the gold medal bout in the event on Tuesday night. She was scheduled to face American Sarah Hildebrandt in the final on Wednesday but will now return home without a medal.
“She was found overweight by 100gm this morning. The rules do not allow this and she has been disqualified,” said an Indian coach.
The Indian Olympic Association later confirmed the development and requested privacy for the wrestler, who was competing in her third Olympics.
“It is with regret that the Indian contingent shares news of the disqualification of Vinesh Phogat from the Women’s Wrestling 50kg class. Despite the best efforts by the team through the night, she weighed in a few grams over 50kg this morning,” the IOA stated.
The Indian wrestler had pulled off the biggest upset of the Games by outwitting the hitherto invincible Yui Susaki of Japan with a perfectly planned strategy before edging past Ukraine’s Oksana Livach to storm into the semis.
Phogat was the first Indian woman wrestler to reach the final at the Olympic Games after a convincing 5-0 victory over Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez in the semi-finals.
Vinesh was approximately 2 kilos overweight on Tuesday night.
‘She didn’t sleep the whole night and did everything in her capacity to meet the criteria – from jogging to skipping and cycling,’ said a report in The Indian Express.
‘However, it didn’t prove to be enough. Sources said the Indian delegation pleaded for some more time to give her a chance to shed the last 100 grams, but to no avail.’
