Vinesh Phogat led a wrestlers' protest against Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh last year.© Twitter/AFP
"A torn ligament. A lower weight category. An unbeaten world champion. Nothing stands in her way" Abhinav Bindra summed up Vinesh Phogat's hurdles aptly, shortly after she became the first Indian woman wrestler to book a final berth at the Olympics. Bindra, India's first-ever gold medallist, though missed mentioning another hurdle. One that saw Vinesh Phogat getting shoved, pushed and dragged on the streets of the National Capital in May last year.
Far from the wrestling mats, Vinesh and her fellow wrestlers including Olympic medallists Bajrang Punia and Sakshi Malik, were fighting a different battle. Of that of demanding the arrest of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief Bris Bhushan Sharan Singh. He had been accused by the wrestlers of sexually harassing several female athletes, stirring a nationwide controversy.
The fight was not easy as the wrestlers stationed themselves at Jantar Mantar. What followed was visuals that moved an entire nation. Police used force to detain the protesting wrestlers prompting top athletes including Neeraj Chopra to voice their support. "I feel saddened to see this. There has to be a better way to deal with this," Neeraj wrote on X.
The WFI was finally suspended and Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh did not stand in the elections though Sanjay Singh, who was elected the new president of the WFI, also met with resistance.
A torn ligament. A lower weight category. An unbeaten world champion. Nothing stands in her way. Can't wait to cheer @Phogat_Vinesh as she goes for gold. Your resilience and strength inspire us all. What an inspiring day, here's hoping for one more! #Paris2024 #Wrestling... pic.twitter.com/3AZ56wKEEZ
— Abhinav A. Bindra OLY (@Abhinav_Bindra) August 6, 2024
Vinesh Phogat finally returned to the wrestling mat in February 2024, winning the nationals in the 55kg category.
Then in an unusual move, in March, she competed in two categories - 50kg and 53 kg -
emerged as the winner in the lighter division in the selection trials for the Asian wrestling championships and Asian Olympic Games qualifier.
In April, Vinesh earned an Olympic quota in the women's 50kg category as she entered the final by entering the Asian Olympic qualifier final.
Four months later, Vinesh is now standing on the cusp of history. She has already delivered Japanese world No. 1 and reigning Olympic champion Yui Susaki the first loss of her international career. Then defeated 2018 European champion Oksana Livach of Ukraine before getting the better of Yusneylis Guzman Lopez of Cuba.
On Thursday, Phogat, after all the turmoil both on and off the mat, will get down to action in the biggest match of her career. But she is already a champion.