Cutting body weight, they say, is tougher than beating the best in business. Unfortunately for Vinesh Phogat, it came true on Wednesday morning when she was deemed overweight by 100 grams at the weigh-in. Scheduled to meet USA’s Sarah Ann Hildebrandt for the gold medal bout in the women’s 50kg final, the 29-year-old failed to make the weight and will consequently finish last in her weight class.
“This is unbelievable. It is tough to imagine how something like this could happen to such an experienced wrestler. Athletes know their bodies very well.
They know what to eat and how much the night before their bout. The coaching staff knows it too. Whatever has happened is terrible,” said Lalit Kumar, the Dronacharya Award-winning wrestler coach of Aman Sehrawat who will be in action later in the competition.
Why does not Phogat get a silver and cannot compete for a bronze? As per Article 11 of the United World Wrestling (UWW) rulebook, the wrestler failing to meet the weight at the weigh-in is disqualified. If such a scenario arises in boxing, the overweight pugilist gives a walkover to the opponent, but disqualification means the erring wrestler finishes last. “If an athlete does not attend or fail the weigh-in (the 1st or the 2nd weigh-in), he will be eliminated from the competition and ranked last,” says the rule.
Was Phogat’s semi-final win legal? Her run to the semis was perfectly legal. Weigh-ins happen in the morning of all competition days and the participatin.