‘For us, Vinesh Phogat is a star, will always be’: Indian sporting fraternity as CAS rejected her Olympic disqualification appeal – Times of India

NEW DELHI: The Indian sporting community expressed disappointment at the Court of Arbitration for Sport‘s (CAS) decision to reject wrestler Vinesh Phogat‘s appeal against her Olympic disqualification. On Wednesday, the ad-hoc division of CAS rejected Vinesh’s appeal after she was disqualified from the Paris Olympics 50kg final for being 100 grams overweight, ending her hopes of securing a belated silver medal.
“It’s disappointing but we can’t do anything about that,” hockey legend PR Sreejesh, who recently retired after helping the Indian team win a second consecutive Olympic bronze medal in the Paris Games, told PTI Videos.
Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Bajrang Punia lamented that a medal was taken away from Vinesh. “I believe your medal was snatched away in this darkness. You are shining like a diamond in the whole world today,” Punia posted on ‘X’. The 29-year-old Vinesh faced disqualification on the morning of the women’s 50kg freestyle final last week. In her appeal, she argued for a joint silver with Cuban wrestler Yusneylis Guzman Lopez, who advanced to the final after Vinesh’s disqualification. The gold medal was claimed by American Sarah Ann Hildebrandt.
“It is a sad news but what can we say. A sportsperson works extremely hard and if something like this happens with anyone, it hurts. For us, Vinesh is a star, will always be,” hockey player Jarmanpreet Singh was quoted as saying by PTI.
His teammate Amit Rohidas echoed similar sentiments: “She should hold her head high. She is a champion for us and the country.”

National wrestling coach Virendra Dahiya called the CAS decision “unfortunate”. “It is very unfortunate and a jolt for us. We were very hopeful that the decision would be in our favor. But it is unfortunate for Indian wrestling and the country,” he added.
Indian Olympic Association president PT Usha also expressed her “shock and disappointment” at the outcome. The organization criticized the “inhumane regulations” of the United World Wrestling (UWW), arguing these rules fail to consider the “physiological and psychological stresses faced by athletes.”
The IOA had enlisted senior counsels Harish Salve and Vidushpat Singhania to aid Vinesh’s case. Singhania stated, “The decision of the CAS was really disappointing. We were very hopeful, Vinesh worked hard the most. After the timeline was extended, we thought the arbitrator Madam was having a thought and that decision could be in our favor. But it was dismissed with a one line statement.”
He noted that they would need to review the detailed order before deciding on the next steps. “We have to wait for the detailed order, we have to see what is written there and accordingly will take a decision regarding future course of action.”