In a disheartening development, Vinesh Phogat, an Indian professional wrestler and a three-time Olympian was disqualified from the 50kg freestyle final at the ongoing Olympic Games in Paris.
Indian Olympic Association in a statement confirmed the same saying, “It is with regret that the Indian contingent shares news of the disqualification of Vinesh Phogat from the Women’s Wrestling 50kg class.
Despite the best efforts by the team through the night, she weighed in a few grams over 50kg this morning. No further comments will be made by the contingent at this time. The Indian team requests respect for Vinesh’s privacy and would like to focus on the ongoing competitions.”
Vinesh was found to be over the weight limit by 150 grams during the weigh-ins leading to her disqualification.
It was also revealed that she was found to be 2kg overweight a day before her upcoming event with USA’s Sarah Hildebrandt for the gold medal and took drastic measures to reach the required weight before the weigh-ins the next day.
Minutes after her disqualification, on 7th August, Phogat fainted due to dehydration and had to be hospitalised according to sources. Vinesh was taken to the polyclinic of the Olympic Village where she is now stable and resting.
All Night Workout
Vinesh Phogat, as per reports worked out the entire night to lose the extra 2kgs she had gained. From skipping and jogging to cycling and more, the Indian wrestler tried everything in her power to lose 1.85kgs which would have brought her down to the eligible weight category.
As per reports, Phogat was also seen in a sweatsuit on the eve before the final round, skipping tirelessly trying to bring her weight down. She did all this without sleeping the entire night.
Read More: Parents Of This Four-Time Olympian Want Her To “Get A Real Job And Be A Regular Girl”
Cutting Hair And More
Indian contingent’s Chief Medical Officer Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala also spoke about the ‘drastic measures’ taken to help Phogat reduce weight.
Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, who is with the Indian contingent in Paris, and IOA president PT Usha explain all the drastic measures that were taken to bring #VineshPhogat's weight to under 50kg, but went in vain.
She is getting treatment for dehydration at the local Olympic hospital.… pic.twitter.com/JL7k12ouXm
— TOI Sports (@toisports) August 7, 2024
Dr Pardiwala who is in charge of the medical requirements for the Indian contingent said, “Wrestlers usually participate in a weight category less than their natural weight. It gives them an advantage since they are fighting with less stronger opponents.
The process of weight cut prior to the weigh-in in the morning involves a calculated restriction of food and water. Besides this, the athlete needs to sweat and that sweating is done by sauna and exercises. Now this weight cut has the benefit of putting you in a lighter weight category.”
He further added, “Weight cuts cause weakness and energy depletion. This is counterproductive to participation. So most wrestlers will thereafter go in for some amount of energy restoration with limited water and high-energy foods. These are usually given after the weigh-in.
The calculation done by the nutritionist is athlete-specific; and Vinesh’s nutritionist felt that the usual amount she takes is about 1.5 kg in total over the day, which gives her enough energy for the bouts.”
Dinshaw Pariwala also explained about ‘rebound weight’, and how her coach and nutritionist used the normal process of weight-cut.
He said, “Sometimes, there’s also a factor of rebound weight gain following competition. Vinesh had three bouts. Hence to prevent any dehydration, some amount of water had to be given.”
He added, “We found that her post-participation weight had increased more than normal. The coach initiated the normal process of weight cut that he always employed with Vinesh.
He felt confident that this would help her lose weight. Over the night the weight cut procedure was followed. In the morning, despite efforts, her weight was found to be 100gm more than the limit. And hence she was disqualified.”
Dr. Pariwala explained some of these measures taken saying, “We had tried all drastic measures throughout the night, including cutting her hair, shortening her clothes. Despite all of this, we could not make that 50kg weight category.”
Olympics Weigh-In Rules
Paris Games organising committee said in a statement: “Vinesh failed second day weigh-in. According to the article 11 of the International Wrestling Rules, Vinesh will be replaced by the wrestler who lost against her in the Semifinal. Therefore Yusneylis Guzman Lopez will compete in the Final.”
Article 11 of the United World Wrestling’s rule book states that “If an athlete does not attend or fail the weigh-in (the 1st or the 2nd weigh-in), he will be eliminated of the competition and ranked last, without rank.”
The UWW also states that while wrestlers have “the right, each in turn, to get on the scale as many times as they wish throughout the weigh-in period” they must attend and pass the weigh-in check to proceed to the next bout.
During the Tuesday morning weigh-ins, Vinesh was found to be within the permissible 50kg limit, however, when she checked her weight on Tuesday night she found her increased by 2 kgs.
According to Olympic rules, wrestlers are made to weigh in twice, once in the morning before the preliminary rounds and once before the final round.
It is assumed that after her historical match on Tuesday, making her the first Indian woman wrestler to reach the Olympic final for a gold medal, defeating Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman 5-0, she had to recharge herself after the exhausting three bouts thus leading to her weight gain.
The UWW does give a grace of 2kg in weights for invitational tournaments, but when it comes to showpieces such as the Olympics, the world championships and the Asian Championships, there is no such leniency shown.
Athletes taking part in contact sports often go without food and/or water for two days before the weigh-in. Boxer Nikhat Zareen also spoke about this, revealing how she went without food or water for two days so she would be within the weight limit but lost strength due to this.
Vinesh who usually competes in the 53kg category, had to switch to the 50kg category to be able to qualify for the 2024 Olympic games.
Phogat knew the issues that came with this, saying in a statement to PTI in April after qualifying for the 50kg quote for India, “I will have to manage my weight a lot better. I have brought myself down to 50kg after so long, so I will try and maintain this as much as I can. It’s not easy for me not to put on weight because my muscle mass is very high.”
Vinesh is not the only athlete to be disqualified during the weigh-in round for the 50kg category, with Italy’s Emanuela Liuzzi also having to forfeit her preliminary bout after being she was found to be overweight.
While Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha has confirmed that the Wrestling Federation of India has filed an appeal with the United World Wrestling (UWW), however, UWW’s chief Nenad Lalovic in a statement to India Today said that the disqualification will not be removed and the appeal won’t change anything.
He said, “We have to respect the rules. I’m so sad that what happened to her. She was overweight very small one. But the rules are rules and everything is public. All the athletes are there and it’s impossible to let someone to compete who does not make the weight.”
Image Credits: Google Images
Feature image designed by Saudamini Seth
Sources: ESPN, India Today, Hindustan Times
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