"Why does god have to always test his strongest soldiers?" - Indian sports community gutted after Vinesh Phogat disqualified from Paris 2024 final
Vinesh Phogat’s disqualification from the women’s freestyle 50kg final at the Paris Olympics 2024 has left the Indian sports community in shock and dismay.
Scheduled to compete against the USA’s Sarah Ann Hildebrandt, Vinesh was poised to make history as the first Indian female wrestler to contend for a gold medal in the Olympics. However, her dreams were abruptly shattered when she failed to make the weight cut by a mere 100 grams during the final weigh-in.
Despite her remarkable journey to the final, which included defeating some of the world's top wrestlers, the stringent rules of the United World Wrestling (UWW) led to her disqualification.
This incident has sparked a wave of emotional reactions and critical reflections from some of India’s most notable athletes and sports personalities. Here’s a look at their responses:
High jumper Tejaswin Shankar, the Asian Games silver medalist in decathlon, was distraught upon hearing the news. He expressed his disbelief and sorrow for Vinesh Phogat through an emotional tweet:
“WHAAAAT??? 😭😭😭😭 why does god have to always test his strongest soldiers???! Vinesh is my Gold medalist or Paris 2024!!"
Former Olympian and World Cup silver medalist in shooting Joydeep Karmakar shared his confusion and pain regarding the situation. Questioning the stringent nature of the weigh-in rules, he wrote:
“Not sure about how it works, but this could not be more painful for all of us! Can’t even guess what she is feeling! But isn’t the weight count for the day of match? If she was under 50 kg yesterday, is it not a legit win, then why out of medal contention?”
Saina Nehwal, India’s first badminton player to win an Olympic medal, was heartbroken after hearing the news.
“This is heartbreaking 💔,” Saina Nehwal wrote.
Abhinav Bindra, the torch bearer at the Paris Olympics 2024 and former gold medalist in shooting, provided a reflective perspective on the situation, saying:
“Completely gutted. Sometimes u don't need a gold medal to be a true champion to people….”
Indian Premier League (IPL) team Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) cricket team also expressed their admiration for Vinesh Phogat's efforts:
“A day of relentless fights, defying the craziest of odds, breaking the world number 1's perfect streak. Need we say more?💪 Vinesh, you did everything that you could, and you are our champion.”
IOC's statement on Vinesh Phogat's disqualification
The International Olympic Committee's (IOC) statement on Vinesh Phogat confirmed that Guzman Lopez will replace the Indian wrestler in the final against Sarah Hildebrandt.
"VINESH Vinesh (IND) failed second day weigh-in. According to the article 11 of the International Wrestling Rules, VINESH Vinesh (IND) will be replaced by the wrestler who lost against her in the Semifinal. Therefore GUZMAN LOPEZ Yusneylis (CUB) will compete in the Final. Repechage SUSAKI Yui (JPN) vs LIVACH Oksana (UKR) will become Bronze Medal Match," the statement read.