Vinesh Phogat Disqualified from Olympics 2024 for Being Overweight

In an unfortunate turn of events for India at the Olympics, wrestler Vinesh Phogat was disqualified from the 50 kg freestyle wrestling category on Wednesday.

She was just a few grams overweight, leading to her disqualification after she had already secured her spot in the gold medal match.

Vinesh Phogat's journey to the finals was amazing. She defeated the World No. 1 and Tokyo 2020 champion Yui Susaki of Japan to qualify for the quarterfinals. In the quarterfinals, she won over Ukraine's Oksana Livach with a 7-5 victory. Vinesh then defeated Cuba's Yusneylis Guzman Lopez in the semi-finals, securing her place as the first Indian woman wrestler to reach an Olympic final.

The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) announced her disqualification with deep regret. "Even with the best efforts by the team through the night, she weighed in a few grams over 50kg this morning. No further comments will be made by the contingent at this time," the IOA stated.

They also requested privacy for Vinesh and asked everyone to focus on the ongoing competitions. This isn’t the first time Vinesh faced such a challenge, as she usually competes in the 53kg category and had narrowly made weight during the Olympic qualifiers.

According to the competition rules, she will not be eligible for a silver medal, leaving only the gold and bronze winners in the 50kg category. A report from PTI quoted an Indian coach who mentioned that Vinesh was overweight by 100 grams this morning. Reports say she spent the previous night jogging and skipping to shed the extra grams but unfortunately couldn’t make weight.

India currently has three bronze medals, and Vinesh's expected medal was a hopeful silver or gold.