Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat, who was disqualified from the 50 kg freestyle wrestling final at the Olympics 2024 in Paris, announced her retirement on Thursday.
In a poignant farewell message on microblogging site X, Phogat revealed her decision after the disheartening disqualification from the Olympics final for exceeding the weight limit by 100 grams.
She wrote, “Wrestling won against me, I lost…my courage is all broken, I don’t have any more strength now. Goodbye Wrestling 2001-2024.”
माँ कुश्ती मेरे से जीत गई मैं हार गई माफ़ करना आपका सपना मेरी हिम्मत सब टूट चुके इससे ज़्यादा ताक़त नहीं रही अब।
अलविदा कुश्ती 2001-2024 ?
आप सबकी हमेशा ऋणी रहूँगी माफी ??
— Vinesh Phogat (@Phogat_Vinesh) August 7, 2024
The 29-year-old athlete also apologised to her fans and expressed her eternal gratitude to her supporters.
Phogat appeals CAS for medal
Before announcing her retirement, the Indian wrestler appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on her disqualification decision and requested a joint silver medal.
CAS has until Thursday, August 8, to deliver its final verdict.
If the ruling is in Phogat’s favour, the International Olympic Committee (IOC) will be required to award her the joint silver medal.
She scripted history on Tuesday by becoming the first Indian woman to reach the final of an Olympic wrestling event.
She secured her place in the final with a dominant 5-0 victory over Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez.
The hurried retirement decision by Phogat, who along with other leading Indian wrestlers Sakshi Malik, and Bajrang Punia, led a protest in Delhi last year against Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) former president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh for his alleged sexual harassment, concludes a distinguished career that began in 2001.
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