Mahavir Phogat writes: ‘I’m heartbroken CAS verdict, but Vinesh will remain a champion in our hearts’ | Sport-others News
Mahavir Phogat
Olympics medal or not, Vinesh would be one of the biggest achievers in wrestling and Indian sports in general. While we are heartbroken at the decision, nothing can take away what she has done for Indian wrestling and will be remembered for her fighting spirit. For us, she will always be a champion and we will accord a welcome for her at Balali village on August 17, when she returns home.
The first time I saw Vinesh was when her mother brought her to our family home in Balali village. She was small but held my fingers tightly when I held her hands. I told her parents how strong this young girl is. Rampal, my brother, and his wife Prem Lata asked me to treat her like my own daughters. That has been the case till now. I treat Vinesh and her ser Priyanka the same way I do my daughters Geeta, Babita, Ritu and Sangeeta.
When I started training Geeta and Babita in 2000, both Vinesh and Ritu, of the same age, would accompany us. Vinesh observed them and discussed the moves when returning home. I would wake her up around 4 am. Like other kids, she did not want to wake up so early but then she knew I was a taskmaster when it came to training. From that day, whether it was summer or winter, raining or not, she would be training in the mud with her sers and would be the last to leave the akhada.
When Vinesh lost her father Rampal in 2003, she was only nine years old. But she resumed training within days. There was this fire in her to prove the world that she can fight the world alone. That anger inside reflected in her mindset. She learned the moves fast. One of the moves she mastered early on was the gut-wrench one, where she locked the opponent and did a side roll. She also nuanced the manoeuvre to grab the neck and perform the side roll with perfection.
Setbacks galore
Over the years, Vinesh has faced disappointments including the injury in Rio Olympics and backlash over her Tokyo performance. But then she has always risen above all those. When she returned home from the Rio Olympics after that knee injury, she told me that it’s not the end of her Olympic dream. The two World Championship bronze medals motivated her but the hunger for an Olympics medal kept her going. That’s what she proved when she beat World No.1 Yusi Susaki. When the news of her disqualification came, I was disappointed not only for the disqualification but also that tragedies had been recurring in her life.
After her heartbreaking disqualification from Paris 2024 Olympics gold medal bout, Vinesh announced her retirement. (PTI)
Last year during the protests, the women in our house were worried seeing the images of Vinesh and Sangeeta being pulled away the police. Par main janta tha ki Vinesh tab tak apni zid nahi chodegi jab tak ki action nahi liya jayega. (But I knew Vinesh would stick to her stand till an action is taken). Wrestling is what she has known all her life and she can do anything for wrestling.
Our thoughts were the same after the disqualification that the decision to hold weigh-in for two days and disqualifying a wrestler, who had reached the final after making the cut on the first day, needs to be challenged. The incident worried us. Such incidents take a toll on the athlete’s mental health, even though her brother, ser and team would have supported her.
The rules need to be corrected to not deny a wrestler his or her efforts on the first day. If needed, there should be more discussions on weigh-in and weight- cutting to ensure that there is no undue advantage for a wrestler.
Mahavir Phogat, uncle of Vinesh, spoke with Nitin Sharma
