Vinesh will take on either USA’s Sarah Hildebrandt, the Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist for the gold.
Paris Olympics 2024 wrestling, Vinesh Phogat into final: Indian female wrestler Vinesh Phogat defied huge odds to assure herself of a medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics by reaching the final in the women’s 50kg wrestling event on Tuesday.
The 29-year-old Vinesh Phogat also scripted history as she became the first Indian woman wrestler to reach an Olympic final in wrestling. Earlier, Sakshi Malik was the only woman wrestler to win an Olympic medal for India, clinching a bronze medal at Rio 2016.
In Paris Olympics 2024, Vinesh Phogat stormed into the women’s 50kg final after three stunning wins. She defeated reigning Pan-American champion Yusneylis Guzman of Cuba in the semi-finals after getting the better of former European champion Oksana Livach of Ukraine in the quarter-finals.
In her opening match, Vinesh Phogat pulled off a colossal upset against Japan's reigning Olympic champion Yui Susaki.
In the semi-final, both Vinesh and Yusneylis started defensively. Still, the Indian wrestler was awarded a point for Yusneylis’s passivity and ended the first period with a slender one-point lead.
Both wrestlers continued to be on guard at the start of the second period. However, Vinesh, in danger of conceding a point on passivity, executed two takedowns to lead 5-0. Vinesh held on to her lead in the final 30 seconds to make it the final of the Paris 2024 Olympics.
On Wednesday, Vinesh will take on either USA’s Sarah Hildebrandt, the Tokyo 2020 bronze medallist, or Mongolia’s Dolgorjavyn Otgonjargal, the three-time world championships medal winner for the gold.
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