Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat is on the cusp of creating history as she will participate in the final of the women’s 50kg freestyle event at the Paris Olympics 2024. Vinesh will face USA’s Sarah Hildebrandt in the final bout to win a gold medal. Vinesh Phogat entered the event unseeded and made it to the final with three back-to-back wins. The 29-year-old is the first Indian woman to reach the final in wrestling at the Olympics. India has won a total of seven medals with two silvers and five bronzes in wrestling at the Games. Vinesh has the chance to become the first Indian woman and wrestler to win a gold medal at the Olympic Games.
Vinesh stunned the top seed and Tokyo Olympics 2020 champion Yui Susaki of Japan in the opening round. She went on to beat Oksana Livach of Ukraine in the quarter-finals and the reigning Pan American Games champion Yusneylis Guzman of Cuba in the semi-final. Meanwhile, Vinesh’s final opponent, Sarah Hildebrandt, is the bronze medal winner of the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Vinesh Phogat’s determination to win an Olympic medal was fueled not just by personal ambition but by her fight for a larger cause. The wrestler, who spent much of the past year protesting against the alleged sexual harassment of women wrestlers by the Wrestlers’ Federation of India’s (WFI) former President Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, has made history by qualifying for the Olympic final. Her journey is a story of redemption and resilience.
Phogat’s motivation was clear. She stated, “I will look him [Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh] in the eye and bring back a medal, you watch.” This resolve was not just about personal victory but about fighting for future generations of wrestlers. She has been vocal about her mission, telling ESPN in November 2023, “I will still fight… If I train well, I can win a medal. No one can stop me.”
Her fellow wrestler, Bajrang Punia, echoed her sentiments, saying, “She told me, ‘I am fighting for the future generation of wrestlers. Not for myself, my career is done and this is my last Olympics. I want to fight for the young women wrestlers who will come and fight for them so that they can wrestle safely.'”
Phogat’s journey to the final saw her defeating the reigning Olympic and world champion, a two-time European Games medallist, and a Pan-American Games champion, securing at least a silver medal in the Paris Olympics. This victory is particularly sweet for the 29-year-old from Haryana, who had entered the Olympics intending to win a medal and show it to Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
This triumph comes after a year of relentless protests in Delhi, where Phogat, Sakshi Malik, and other athletes staged a sit-in against the alleged misconduct. Despite facing vilification, police detentions, and even a dramatic moment where they traveled to Haridwar to throw their medals into the Ganges, Phogat’s resolve remained unshaken.
Her historic semi-final win at the Paris Olympics stands as a testament to her resilience and the cause she champions, bringing hope and inspiration to future generations of wrestlers.
Heart break for India as Vinesh Phogat gains 150g weight and is disqualified from 50kg wrestling event at the Olympics.
