Wrestler Vinesh Phogat suffered a one-sided 0-10 defeat against Anju of Railways in the semi-final of the 53 kg category in the trials being conducted by the ad-hoc committee that is currently looking after Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) to select the Indian squad for the Olympic Qualifiers, on Monday, 11 March.
Vinesh will now represent India in the 50kg category at Asian Olympic Games qualifiers in Kyrgyzstan scheduled for April.
However, the two time Olympian Vinesh defeated Shivani 11-6 in the 50 kg bout in the trials being conducted at the National Institute of Sports in Patiala.
While both 50kg and 53kg are Olympic weight categories, previously, the 29-year-old used to compete in the 53kg category, but she switched to the 50kg category after Antim Panghal secured an Olympic quota in the 53kg category.
Delayed Start in the Trials
Initially, the start of the selection trials for women's wrestling in the 50kg and 53kg categories faced a delay as Vinesh Phogat wanted a written assurance that a final trial would take place in the 53kg class before the Olympics. Additionally, she requested permission to participate in both 50kg and 53kg trials on Monday.
Vinesh, who had accused former WFI President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh of sexual harassment and led a prolonged protest against him, showed up to compete in the 50kg trials.
After a bit of halt, 50 kg trials began with 14 wrestlers. Vinesh Phogat participated in both 50 kg and 53 kg both after the ad-hoc committee allowed her to participate in both categories on same day.
“Vinesh wants an assurance from the government. Probably she fears that if WFI gets back the control, the federation may change the selection policy. But how can the government give assurance on this? The government can’t interfere in selection matters,” a coach, present at the trials, had told PTI.
“Probably she wants to secure her future. If she loses 50kg trials today she wants to ensure that she remains in the hunt in 53kg. If she finishes in top-4 today in 53kg, she remains alive for Paris Games qualification,” the coach added.
Notably, when she returned to the mat in February 2024 after a hiatus of over a year, she won a gold medal at the Senior National Wrestling Championships in Jaipur while competing in the 55kg category. Vinesh had then defeated Madhya Pradesh’s Jyothi 4-0, securing a victory by fall.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)