CHENNAI: Vinesh Phogat's tryst with history was snatched away from her in the most heartbreaking of circumstances. During the mandatory weigh-in on Wednesday morning, Phogat, who was scheduled to fight in the gold medal bout in the 50kg category, was 100g overweight.
Yeah, we read about it. But 100g seems to be a bit harsh, right?
Well, it depends on which way you look at it. But the rules are the rules.
From a broader perspective, all combat sports (taekwondo, boxing, wrestling, judo, and karate, to name a few) are divided based on weight class. This is to ensure that athletes are evenly matched up.
And weight-cutting is a common practice in combat sports where athletes rapidly lose weight before a weigh-in to qualify for a lower-weight class. This process often involves dehydration techniques, fasting or reducing food and water intake, and intense exercise to shed water weight.
Although it can provide a competitive advantage, weight-cutting poses significant health risks, including dehydration, electrolyte imbalances, and decreased performance.
For example, in women's wrestling, the weight classes are categorised as 50 kg, 53 kg, 57 kg, 62 kg, 68 kg, and 76 kg.
And Phogat was competing in the 50 kg category, meaning she could not exceed 50 kg at the time of her weigh-in. It doesn't matter if her weight was 50.1 or 60.1, she will be disqualified for not making the weight.
Notably, United World Wrestling (UWW), the world governing body for amateur wrestling, allows a 2kg tolerance for other tournaments, but that doesn't apply at the Olympics.
Competitions like the World Cup and various international tournaments (excluding UWW Ranking Events) allow a 2kg weight tolerance, according to UWW's regulations.
Why was she allowed to fight on the first day then?
Wrestling events are spread over two days. So, there are two weigh-ins, one on each day. Phogat was below the threshold on Tuesday morning, on the first day of her events. But United World Wrestling (UWW) rules state that all wrestlers involved in the second day of action will have to have a second weigh-in on day two. These rules were well known beforehand.
Why strip her of silver, then? It's not like she was outside 50kg on Tuesday?
UWW rules are clear. A wrestler will have to be within the threshold during both weigh-ins. Otherwise, they will be disqualified and finish last.
What happened at her second weigh-in on Wednesday morning?
Here's a rough sequence of events after her last bout on Tuesday.
After taking on board some fluids and food, Vinesh had put on close to 2.7kg (it's okay to be above your weight after the weigh-in finishes). And throughout the night, Phogat and the support staff (coach, the contingent's Chief Medical Officer, and others) tried various ways to bring down her body weight.
She skipped, ran, did cycling, and also used the athletes village's gym to cut weight (it's a routine wrestlers are fairly familiar with), apart from using the sauna as well as sparring. At roughly 5.30 AM, with about two hours to go for her weigh-in, she was about 500g above the threshold.
As she hadn't consumed any water, her body had stopped sweating. After this, the contingent became increasingly desperate, and they even resorted to cutting her hair. At the weigh-in, a narrow 15-minute window, she was found to be 100g over (in that window, she could have given weight multiple times as there is no limit).
If the contingent knew there was no chance of her cutting weight, why didn't they pull her out and keep the silver?
There's no provision for this. The UWW rules are again clear. They can't just feign injury and hope the governing body turns the other way around. It's mandatory to give a weigh-in on the second day as well.
What about conspiracy theories? We have read a few...
Disregard all conspiracy theories. Vinesh is surrounded by doctors, PhDs, and people who know what they are dealing with. Also, do take into account that Phogat's natural body weight is well into the 50s.
After competing in the 53kg category in the 2021 Olympics, she dropped down to the 50kg category in March 2024 as she changed the weight category. She had no option but to drop down after Antim Panghal had secured a quota in the 53kg category.
Vinesh has had historical issues with cutting weight. In fact, during the 2016 Olympic qualifiers in Mongolia, she was overweight by 400g.
At the weigh-in on Tuesday morning, she successfully made the cut. On the second day, Wednesday morning, she tried everything possible but fell just short. In fact, to ensure she didn't face severe dehydration, she had been taken to a facility inside the village once she was disqualified.
What are the people saying?
Dinshaw Pardiwala, Chief Medical Officer of the Indian contingent:
The process of weight cut involves a calculated restriction of food and water, along with sweating from exercises and the sauna till the morning weigh-in. This weight cut causes weakness and energy depletion, which is counterproductive to participation... For energy restoration, limited water and high-energy foods are given after weigh-in. Vinesh's nutritionist had calculated this to be 1.5 kg. There is sometimes also a rebound weight gain following competition.
Nenad Lalovic, UWW President:
You have to respect the rules. I am so sad about what happened to her. The weigh-in is in public (it gets recorded), and all the other wrestlers are there. Everybody who goes to the medal round knows that they will be weighed in again.
PT Usha, Indian Olympic Association President:
We are providing Vinesh with all medical and emotional support. The Wrestling Federation of India has appealed to UWW, and it is following this up in the strongest possible manner. I am aware of the relentless effort made by Vinesh's medical team throughout the night so that she could meet the competition requirements.
Jordan Burroughs, US wrestler and 2012 Olympic gold medallist:
Jordan Burroughs, a six-time world champion, urged the UWW to implement immediate rule changes on weight regulations and called for the silver medal to be awarded to Vinesh. He proposed a series of changes in a post on X, including introducing a 1kg weight allowance on the second day of competition and recommended pushing weigh-ins to 10:30 am to allow athletes more time to meet weight requirements.
Additionally, Burroughs advocated for new rules governing medal distribution in the event of disqualification. He suggested that both finalists should secure their medals after a semifinal victory, even if one misses weight on the second day. In such cases, only the wrestler who makes weight would be eligible for the gold medal.
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