New Delhi: Vinesh Phogat made history on Tuesday by becoming the first Indian woman wrestler to reach an Olympic final. Unfortunately, she faced a shocking disqualification on Wednesday from the womens 50kg event just hours before her gold-medal match against American Sarah Hildebrand. The reason for her disqualification was being overweight at the weigh-in held at the Champ-de-Mars Arena.Disqualification dramaVineshs journey to the final was nothing short of extraordinary. The 29-year-old from Haryana overcame numerous challenges to qualify for the Paris Olympics and achieved a stunning victory against the defending champion and world number one, Yui Susaki of Japan. However, on the morning of the final, she was found to be 100-150 grams over the permissible weight limit, leading to her disqualification.It is official. Vinesh Phogat is disqualified from the Olympics pic.twitter.com/iBh8v1iDeY— jonathan selvaraj (@jon_selvaraj) August 7, 2024Cuban wrestler to replace Vinseh PhogatAccording to a press release, “Vinesh Phogat (IND) failed the second-day weigh-in. According to Article 11 of the International Wrestling Rules, Vinesh will be replaced by the wrestler who lost against her in the semifinal. Therefore, Guzman Lopez Yusneylis (CUB) will compete in the final. The repechage match between Susaki Yui (JPN) and Livach Oksana (UKR) will now serve as the bronze medal match.”Weight management strugglesThe competition rules require wrestlers to weigh in on the mornings of both the preliminary rounds and the finals. Although Vinesh was within the 50 kg limit on Tuesday, her weight increased after competing in three bouts that day. Reports from the Indian Express indicated that she was two kilograms over the limit by the evening and resorted to drastic measures such as jogging, skipping, and cycling overnight to shed the excess weight.A Sportstar report mentioned that Vinesh, along with her coaches and support staff, even took extreme steps like cutting her hair and attempting to draw blood to meet the weight requirements. Despite these efforts, she remained 150 grams above the limit.Impact of the rulebookAs per Article 11 of the United World Wrestlings rulebook, athletes who fail to meet the weight requirement are eliminated from the competition and ranked last. Vineshs disqualification means she will miss out on winning her first Olympic medal. The United World Wrestling technical delegate confirmed the changes in the matchups, stating, Vinesh failed the second-day weigh-in. According to Article 11 of the International Wrestling Rules, she will be replaced by the wrestler who lost against her in the semifinal. Thus, Guzman Lopez Yusneylis will compete in the final, and the repechage between Susaki Yui and Livach Oksana will be the bronze medal match.
