Vinesh Phogat won the second gold medal for India at the Asian Games 2018 as she defeated Japan’s Yuki Irie by a comprehensive margin of 6-2 in the 50 kg freestyle in wrestling. The gold marked India’s fifth medal at the 18th Asian Games.
Phogat created history on Monday, 20 August, by becoming the first Indian woman wrestler to win an Asian Games gold.
Both the gold medals that India won in the two days of its campaign have come in wrestling, the first being won by Bajrang Punia in the men’s 65 kg freestyle category.
Putting her heart-breaking loss at the Olympics two years ago behind her, Vinesh began her victorious campaign with a revenge win against China’s Sun Yanan against whom she had suffered that terrible leg injury which cut short her journey in Rio.
Sports Minister Rajyavardhan Rathore congratulated Phogat on Twitter and dubbed her performance “stupendous”.
AIFF boss Praful Patel also congratulated Phogat on her record-setting victory in the Asian Games 2018.
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