Indian woman wrestler Vinesh Phogat’s stint at Paris Olympics came to a heartbreaking end on Wednesday after she was disqualified ahead of her final bout in women’s freestyle 50kg category. During the weigh-in ahead of the final, her weight was found to up by 100 grams, which led to her disqualification from the title bout. This will make Vinesh would return home without a medal.
However what led to her suddenly becoming overweight after she measured 49.9 kg, a day before on Tuesday before entering the pre-quarterfinals and in a span of just 12 hours weighing 2.8 kg.
Chief Medical Officer of the Indian team in Paris Olympics Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, in a statement clarified how and what happened to Vinesh, due to which she was disqualified. He revealed the process Vinesh adopted to lose weight but shortage of time made Vinesh reduce her weight within permissible limit.
Dr Pardiwala stated that the process of weight loss before weighing program is very risky and requires a lot of precautions. In this, the athlete has to take precautions regarding food and drink besides has to sweat a lot. This is done by a machine and some particular exercises. Steam is also used in this. Although the results are favourable in reducing weight for becoming eligible for lighter weight category, it causes weakness and lack of energy in the athlete which poses obstructs playing to full potential in that category.
Dr Pardiwala further stated “To maintain energy, we give water and some energetic food to athletes which counter balances in a way. If one can lose weight, then he or she can compete with a less capable player. Many wrestlers do this. There is a strategy under which one can get his or her energy back, but the amount of water and food also has to be monitored. The team present with the wrestler was responsible for calculating this. The diet that Vinesh needed to step on the mat was 1.5 kg. This team has been working with Vinesh for a long time and Vinesh herself was comfortable working with that team. So she took a diet of 1.5 kg, which she needed to fight three bouts. One thing should be noted here that when you lose weight through dehydration, you need water. By doing this, there is a risk of your weight increasing in reverse.
He maintained that ‘When Vinesh came on the mat three times on Tuesday, all her three matches were tough. She needed water to protect herself from dehydration, so her body remained energized. If this was not done she would have fallen ill and the medical condition thereafter would not permit her to compete. In such a situation, she needed nutrition and water. When her weight was measured after the semi-finals, it was 2.7 kg more than the prescribed weight limit i.e., Vinesh’s total body weight increased to 52.7 kg. However, before the pre-quarterfinals, Vinesh’s weight was 49.9 kg.
Witnessing this, the team and coach started their work, which included sweating, taking limited amount of water, no food, etc which usually required time, but Vinesh did not have much time or to be precise had only 12 hours. In such a situation, the team tried to make every possible effort throughout the night so that Vinesh could reduce her weight.
However, Dr Pardiwala revealed, “when she could not sweat anymore, the team adopted some other methods like cutting her hair, reducing her clothes by a few milligrams, etc but it did not help.”
Vinesh appeals in CAS, decision today
Wrestler Vinesh Phogat has appealed against her disqualification from the wrestling final at the Paris Olympics 2024 with the Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS). The move from the Indian wrestler comes after she was not allowed to compete in the finals of the women’s 50kg category after missing her weight by just 100 grams. Vinesh, who had won the semi-final bout via a 5-0 margin was the first Indian woman wrestler to qualify for the final in the Olympics.
Reports revealed Vinesh has asked that she be given the silver medal. CAS has asked till Thursday, 8 August morning to give its final verdict. If CAS rules in Vinesh’s favour, IOC will have to award a joint silver to Vinesh.
What is CAS?
The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) is an independent institution established in 1984 to facilitate the settlement of sports-related disputes through arbitration or mediation. It is headquartered in Lausanne, Switzerland, and has courts in New York City and Sydney, with temporary courts set up in Olympic host cities.
CAS is independent of any sports organization and operates under administrative and financial authority of International Council of Arbitration for Sport (ICAS). CAS resolves legal disputes in the field of sport through arbitration, pronouncing arbitral awards that have the same enforceability as judgments of ordinary courts.
