Vinesh Phogat Announces Retirement After Disqualification in Paris Olympics 2024, Says 'Goodbye...'

Vinesh Phogat Retirement After Disqualification in Paris Olympics 2024: Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat announced her retirement on Thursday following her disqualification from the final of the 50kg wrestling event at the Paris Olympics 2024. She shared an emotional message on X expressing her heartbreak, saying, “Maa kushti jeet gayi, main haar gayi” (Wrestling has defeated me, I have lost).

"Mom, the wrestling won, I lost. Forgive me. Your dream and my courage are all broken. I don't have any more strength. Goodbye wrestling 2001-2024. I will always be indebted to you all. I am sorry," said Vinesh Phogat while announcing her retirement. 

Meanwhile, Vinesh Phogat has filed an appeal against her Olympic disqualification with the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) wherein she has requested that she be awarded the silver medal. Notably, the CAS has acknowledged the appeal and will most likely deliver its final verdict by Thursday at 11:30 AM IST. It is pertinent to mention that the CAS is an international body set up in Switzerland to resolve disputes in the world of sports. 

Why was Vinesh Phogat disqualified from Paris Olympics 2024?

In a heartbreaking turn of events, Vinesh Phogat was disqualified from the Paris Olympics' final event for being overweight in the women’s 50kg category on the morning of her gold medal bout on Wednesday. At Paris 2024, each weight category is organised over two competition days. The medical control and weigh-in for each category takes place on the morning of the first competition day. On the second competition day, wrestlers, who qualified for the finals and repechage, are weighed in again.

According to wrestling rules, if a wrestler fails the weigh-in on either day of the competition (preliminaries, repechage, and final rounds), he/she gets eliminated from the event.