The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) is set to begin the hearing for Vinesh Phogat’s appeal around 9:30 am Paris time (1 pm IST) on August 9 (Friday), with an interim verdict expected about an hour later. This development is a significant boost for both Vinesh and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), as CAS has preliminarily found merit in Vinesh’s plea for a joint silver medal in the women’s 50kg wrestling.
Vinesh Phogat, who was disqualified from her gold-medal bout against Sarah Ann Hildebrandt of the USA due to being 100 grams overweight, faced a devastating setback. Despite being the first Indian female wrestler to reach an Olympic final, she was stripped of her podium finish. Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez, whom Vinesh defeated in the semifinals, was promoted to the final but lost to Hildebrandt, who won gold.
In the aftermath, despite desperate efforts—including cutting her hair, staying sleepless, and limiting her food and water intake—Vinesh was disqualified as per United World Wrestling (UWW) regulations requiring wrestlers to meet weight limits each day of competition. Her initial appeal to CAS to allow her to compete for gold was rejected, but the appeal for a joint silver medal was accepted.
Vinesh, who had won her first three bouts on August 6, faced weight issues due to the extreme demands of her matches and the need to rehydrate and recover. The weigh-in process on the second day proved challenging, leading to her disqualification.
Amid these challenges, the IOA has enlisted Harish Salve, former Solicitor General of India, to represent Vinesh at CAS. The IOA’s legal argument emphasizes that the 100 grams over the limit was negligible and likely due to normal bodily responses such as bloating or muscle gain from competition stress. They assert that this minor excess did not provide any competitive advantage and call for respect for the athlete’s physical integrity.
Vinesh, who announced her retirement from wrestling on Thursday, has expressed feeling depleted and unable to continue. The outcome of the CAS hearing could potentially restore some of the honor lost in the wake of her disqualification.
