Vinesh Phogat was on the verge of rewriting history at the Paris Olympics 2024 by becoming the first ever female Indian wrestler to have qualified for an Olympic final. She had even defeated Japan’s undefeatable Yui Susaki on her way to the final.
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However, her happiness was cut short by an uneventful announcement on the morning of the day of the final. The International Olympic Committee (IOC) had taken the step to disqualify Phogat from the final of the women’s freestyle wrestling in the 50 kg category.
The 29-year-old was set to take on USA’s Sarah Hilderbrandt in the final after defeating Cuba’s Yusnelys Guzman. However she was stripped of her spot from the final, while the Cuban got the chance to feature against Hilderbrandt despite losing the semi-finals.
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Why was Vinesh Phogat disqualified?
Phogat’s disqualification news came as a shocker for people residing in the subcontinent. Her disqualification from the competition was also speculated to have been politically motivated.
However, it was later revealed that Phogat had been disqualified because of being overweight to participate in the 50 kg weight category. She was estimated to have put on 1.5 kgs after her recovery meal following the semi-final, but a huge miscalculation by the team resulted in Phogat putting on 2.7 kgs with less than 24 hours to go for the final.
She had to go through a highly physically and mentally strenuous procedure in order to cut her weight in such a short span of time and fit into the weight category. The athlete gave her everything to achieve the impossible task, unfortunately though, she missed the weight class by a whisker. Phogat was found to be just 100 gms overweight ahead of the final, resulting in an instant disqualification.
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According to the rules, once disqualified, the athlete will be seeded last in the standings and stripped of any medals if won. This resulted in Phogat not even winning the silver medal despite the efforts. Phogat made an appeal to the Court of Arbitration (CAS) with an appeal for a silver medal.
When is Vinesh Phogat's CAS hearing? And who are her lawyers?
CAS is a well established independent body that sorts out disputes related to sports. As things stand, CAS has accepted Phogat’s plea and a hearing will be taking place soon.
Phogat has been represented by prominent Indian and French lawyers, including top-notch Indian lawyers, Vidhushpat Singhania and Harish Salve. Salve, 69 years old, has been known to represent numerous corporations in his career, even serving as the Solicitor General of India from 1999 to 2002.
Phogat announced her retirement from the sport following the devastating news on the day of the final. She had been stripped of a deserved place in the final despite giving everything she possibly could. Her only hope of bagging a medal in Paris now is the decision of the CAS.
On August 10, the CAS extended the date of the verdict to August 13. On the August 13 verdict, the CAS once again extended the verdict to August 16, Friday. The verdict is expected to be now delivered on Friday at 9:30 PM IST.
BREAKING Again the case has been extended 16 August 6pm Paris time. @Phogat_Vinesh @RevSportzGlobal
— Boria Majumdar (@BoriaMajumdar) August 13, 2024
On August 11, all the legal submissions were completed and the CAS will now deliver their verdict on Tuesday.
What is the verdict on Vinesh Phogat's CAS hearing?
As per the latest reports, Vinesh Phogat's plea for a silver medal at the Paris Olympics 2024 has been dismissed. The official verdict by the CAS is yet to be out, but the operative part of the order reportedly dismissed the plea. It would mean no medal for Vinesh Phogat in the 50 Kg freestyle category in wrestling in Paris Olympics.
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