Vinesh Phogat's dreams of an Olympic medal in Paris 2024 got a jolt when she was disqualified from the competition for being 100 grams over the weight limit before her final bout. Vinesh weighed 49.9 kg on August 6 and weighed 52.7 kg by the night of the semi-final.
The weight increase was due to drinking water and having some food after her weigh-in session. Vinesh had a glass of juice (300 grams) and several liters of fluid, which supplied an expected 2 kg. Also, sweets and other light foods contributed 700 grams to her total weight. However hard she tried to lose the extra weight—six hours on a treadmill and three hours in a sauna—she failed. Her coaches even went to the extreme of taking a pair of scissors to her costume and hair in order to ensure she was within the permissible weight.
The Indian contingent’s Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Dinshaw Pardiwala, said “Her post-participation weight at the end of the semi-finals in the evening was found to be 2.7 kg more than the allowed weight. The team and the coach started off their usual process, which is of course limitation of water, no food.” Vinesh’s case shows the extent to which wrestlers are forced to make weight and the consequences that can ensue as a result. Her story is well understood within the wrestling community and defines what it means to be on the cusp of success and failure at the highest level of sport.
