Vinesh had initially appealed that she should be allowed to compete in the final. She was disqualified from the women’s 50kg wrestling final in Paris Olympics on August 7.
However, in another appeal, Vinesh requested she be given a joint silver medal. The IOC officially announced that Vinesh was disqualified on August 7 and promoted Cuba’s Guzman Yusneylys, who lost to the Indian in the semi-final, to compete in the gold medal bout. Yusneylys lost to USA’s Sarah Ann Hilderbrandt in the gold medal match.
An ad-hoc division of the CAS registered the appeal and heard the arguments of applicant Vinesh Phogat, the respondents United World Wrestling and the International Olympic Committee, as well as IOA as an interested party.
Sole Arbitrator Dr Annabelle Bennett of Australia heard the arguments for over three hours on Saturday. While the ad-hoc division of the sports court CAS was scheduled to pronounce the verdict on Saturday, it gave an additional 24 hours for the concerned parties to provide more evidence and 72 hours for the sole arbitrator to give the verdict. The decision in Vinesh Phogat’s appeal is now expected to be out on Tuesday, August 13.
Vinesh’s lawyers, including senior counsels Harish Salve and Vidushpat Singhania, argued that the weight gain on Tuesday evening was due to the body’s natural recovery process and that it is the athlete’s fundamental right to look after his/her body. They argued her body weight was under the prescribed limit on Day 1 of the competition, and the weight gain only happened because of recovery and that’s not a fraud.
Hasibur Rahaman is a passionate sports journalist. He covers everything from cricket to field hockey, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis of sporting events, both within India and on the international stage.
