Indian Wrestler Vinesh Phogat Loses Olympic Dream Due to Weight Issue
Vinesh Phogat, one of the established Indian wrestlers, is out of contention for the 2024 Paris Olympics. This was meant to fight for the gold medal in the light contact with equipment for the 53 kg category. However, she cannot perform in that—she has been barred, meaning, she is unable to compete. This was so due to her weight; which was slightly above the recommended weight for the job.
Why Was She Disqualified?
Before wrestling, the athletes have to weigh exactly the right amount. Vinesh was to weigh 50 kg or less. When checked, she was 100 grams too heavy, about the weight of a small apple. Though that is not much, the rules in the Olympics are very strict. Hence, she could not compete.
How Did This Happen?
Vinesh generally wrestles in a heavier category of 53 kg. She had to reduce her weight for the Olympics to enter the 50 kg category. On the first day, she did manage to bring down her weight to the required limit. However, a wrestler needs to sustain their weight throughout all the competition days. The night before her crucial match, Vinesh discovered that she weighed 2 kgs more than acceptable limits.
What Did Vinesh Do to Try and Fix This?
Vinesh and her team worked the whole night, really hard, to lose the extra weight. She did plenty of exercise: running, skipping, cycling. They came very close but couldn’t quite lose the final 100 grams in time.
What Implication Does This Have for Vinesh?
This is very unfortunate for Vinesh. She was the first Indian woman wrestler to qualify for the Olympics, not mention the first one to get to the final. For that she had defeated some of the best wrestlers the world has to offer. Such feats had positioned Sharon as a very formidable wrestler in the world. In one instance, she would get no medal at all, not even a silver or a bronze when she at times was so near claiming a gold.
Has Vinesh ever come across a such thing as good luck that she can run out of it?
Yes, this is not the first time Vinesh has had problems at the Olympics:
– 2016: She wanted a match during the Rio Olympics, and it gave her an opportunity; got a wound.
– 2020: She is a competitor knocked out in one of the early bouts of the Tokyo Olympics.
– In this time of 2024 this weight problem has kept her from representing her country in the Olympics.
What Now?
Thereby the gold medal will go to the wrestler Vinesh who was scheduled to wrestle with her counterpart in the final fight. According to the prediction, Vinesh would be traveling back home empty-handed or with no medal for her troubles. That is a rather tough lesson pointing towards the intricacies of what can be the massive disparity as well as similarities between the physical activities about sports.
