Indian wrestler who was disqualified after making Olympic history breaks her silence
Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who was disqualified from the gold medal match hours after she made Olympic history, is speaking out after a week of silence.
An Indian wrestler who was disqualified from the 50-kilogram gold medal match hours after she made Olympic history is speaking out after a week of silence.
Vinesh Phogat, who was eliminated last week due to being “a few grams” over the weight class shortly after she had become the first woman from Team India to make the Olympic finals, released a statement Friday expressing both gratitude for her journey as well as disappointment for its end.
Phogat, who was still praised by Indian fans because of her activism for women’s rights and against sexual harassment in her sport, said that her early departure from the competition made her feel as though “what we had planned to achieve is unfinished.”
India's Vinesh Vinesh celebrates her win over Cuba's Yusneylis Guzman Lopez in their women's freestyle 50kg wrestling semi-final match during the Paris 2024 Olympic Games on Aug. 6, 2024. Punit Paranjpe / AFP - Getty Images“All I want to say is that we did not give up, our efforts did not stop, and we did not surrender but the clock stopped and the time was not fair. So was my fate,” she said of attempting to make the weight class. “I can’t predict what the future holds for me, and what awaits me in this journey next, but I am sure that I will continue to fight always for what I believe in and for the right thing.”
“All I want to say is that we did not give up, our efforts did not stop, and we did not surrender but the clock stopped and the time was not fair. So was my fate,” she said of attempting to make the weight class. “I can’t predict what the future holds for me, and what awaits me in this journey next, but I am sure that I will continue to fight always for what I believe in and for the right thing.”
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