Introduction
Vinesh Phogat, Indian freestyle wrestler was born on August 25, 1994. He has won two bronze medals at the World Wrestling Championships and four gold medals at the Commonwealth Games (in 2014, 2018, and 2022). She was the first Indian woman wrestler to make it to an Olympic final and competed in three Olympic Games (2016, 2020, and 2024). However, in 2024, she was disqualified for being slightly heavier person. Phogat participated in the 2023 wrestlers' protest against Indian Wrestling Federation president Brij Bhushan Singh and received a 2019 Laureus World Sports Award nomination.
Early and personal life
Born in Charkhi Dadri, Haryana, on August 25, 1994, Vinesh Phogat comes from a wrestling family that includes cousins Geeta, Ritu, and Babita Phogat. The community opposed her father and uncle's efforts to further her wrestling career. She wed fellow wrestler Somvir Rathee on December 13, 2018, and the two have been employed with Indian Railways since 2011.
Career
Early career
Vinesh Phogat earned bronze at the Asian Wrestling Championships in New Delhi in 2013 in the 51 kg division. At the Commonwealth Wrestling Championships in Johannesburg, she also won silver. She took home the gold in the 48 kg division at the 2014 Commonwealth Games. In the same weight class, she won silver at the 2015 Asian Championships in Doha, and bronze at the 2014 Asian Games in Incheon.
Injury and comeback
Vinesh Phogat won the 2016 Istanbul qualifying tournament, guaranteeing him a spot at the Olympics. She reached the quarterfinals of the 2016 Rio Olympics but had to withdraw because of an ACL injury. Returning to the scene, she became the first Indian woman wrestler to win gold in both the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games in the 50 kg division. She placed third in the World Wrestling Championship, first in the Yasar Dogu Tournament, and third in the Asian Wrestling Championships in 2019. She also won gold at the Rome Ranking Series in January 2020, making history as the first wrestler from India to qualify for the Olympics in Tokyo 2020.
Further wins and later
Vinesh Phogat won gold at the Matteo Pellicone Ranking Series and the Kyiv tournament in 2021. After winning gold in the Poland Open, she was punished for lack of discipline by the Wrestling Federation of India. She took home gold from the Commonwealth Games and a bronze medal at the World Championships in 2022. She defeated Yui Susaki, the champion, at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, although she was disqualified for being heavier person.
Protests against WFI
Due to accusations of sexual harassment, Vinesh Phogat and more than thirty Indian wrestlers—among them Sakshi Malik and Bajrang Punia—demonstrated against the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI). Its president, Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, in January 2023. After the Indian government pledged to establish an oversight committee. The demonstrations came to a halt, but they later broke out again in April because the wrestlers believed the government had not kept its word. Phogat informed Anurag Thakur, the minister of sports, and Prime Minister Narendra Modi about threats and harassment. The WFI's recently elected body was suspended by the Sports Ministry on December 24, 2023, due to policy infractions.
Honors
In addition to becoming the first Indian nominee for the Laureus World Sports Awards in 2019. Vinesh Phogat was also the recipient of the Arjuna Award in 2016 and a Padma Shri nomination in 2018. She was nominated for the BBC Indian Sportswoman of the Year award in 2022 and received the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna in 2020.