One of India’s star wrestlers has had her hopes of Olympic glory shattered, drawing calls for an appeal from the country’s leadership, according to reports.
Vinesh Phogat, who competes in the 50-kilogram category of women’s freestyle wrestling, was disqualified from the Paris Games on Wednesday after failing to make weight for her Olympic final against Sarah Hildebrandt of the U.S.
Phogat, 29, was touted as a potential champion, having become the first international wrestler to defeat reigning gold medalist Yui Susaki, during an opening match.
After weighing in 100 grams over the weight limit, according to The Indian Express, the decision will mean Phogat does not qualify for any medal, despite winning her quarter- and semifinal bouts.
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“It is with regret that the Indian contingent shares news of the disqualification of Vinesh Phogat from the Women’s Wrestling 50kg class,” the Indian Olympic Association wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “Despite the best efforts by the team through the night, she weighed in a few grams over 50kg this morning.”
The Indian Express reported that Phogat spent Tuesday night exercising in order to cut the necessary water to make weight. Reports claimed that wrestler has now been hospitalized at a center in the Paris Olympic Village.
Images posted on X appeared to show the athlete slumped over while wearing what appears to be a sauna suit, designed to increase sweating. Newsweek was unable to verify when the images were taken.
Minutes after the decision, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi commended Phogat on her success during The Games.
“Vinesh, you are a champion among champions! You are India’s pride and an inspiration for each and every Indian,” Modi wrote on X.
According to some news agencies within India, including The Hindustan Times and NDTV, Modi spoke with Indian Olympic Association President P.T. Usha on Wednesday, seeking further information on the disqualification and requesting that she file an appeal against the decision.
Newsweek has contacted the Indian Olympic Association for comment on the disqualification and to ask whether it is attempting to overturn Phogat’s disqualification.
Heinz-Peter Bader/Associated Press
This is the latest bit of bad luck for India’s Olympians, who have so far had a tough run at the Paris Games.
Indian boxer Nishant Dev lost his 71-kilogram quarterfinal match against Mexico’s Marco Verde Alvarez on Saturday in a back-and-forth contest, the result of which surprised Dev and other prominent Indian athletes.
Indian boxer Vijender Singh, who won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Olympics, told ThePrint that Dev was “was the better boxer,” adding that the judges’ decision left him “in disbelief.”
“It felt like a dream turned into a nightmare in an instant,” Dev wrote in an Instagram post following the bout. “Hearing the judges’ scores, it felt as though there was nothing left in my body—The pain was so intense that I felt I just couldn’t take it.”
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