Vinesh Phogat Alleges Bias After Asian Games Trial Exit

Phogat, an MLA on Congress from Haryana State, has had problems since she led a campaign against the WFI's former president, Brij Bushan Sharan Singh, who continues to be accused of sexual harassment. 

Weight Category Dispute

Vinesh was permitted to compete in the Asian Games selection trials, upon the Supreme Court of India granting approval. The Olympian was in the 53 kg weight category, however, selection trials turned to a controversy as WFI forbade Vinesh from competing in her favourite weight category. 

The challenges were tossed in at arbitrary intervals and it was also seen multiple moments of technical failure on the screen, one of the two bouts she fought also ran into controversy. Goyat defeated her in the third bout with a score of 6-4 and her hopes of competing in the Asian Games had been dashed. 

Vinesh Alleges Bias During Competition

Vinesh said that she did her best. She also alleged biasness and said, “I did well, I did the best I could I think I’ll work harder.”

“The entire system is standing on one side, and we are all standing on the other side, but we can proudly say that we are standing tall against them and will continue to fight.” 

“Obviously, there was biasness. I want to train so hard that even those who are cheating will be left behind. I want to improve to such an extent that, despite their cheating, they will not be able to defeat me. I will continue to work hard, train even harder, and perform even better,” she said.

Asian Games Dream Ends After Loss

Vinesh's route to semifinals was not easy as she led Jyoti 7-1 in her first match and then defeated Nishu 7-6, in a cutthroat quarterfinal match where she just pushed her way in the final four. She finally fell against Meenakshi who had a brutal battle against Vinesh and left 6-4. The defeat has killed the dream of a comeback in wrestling for the wrestler as she is unable to make a reservation for her ticket to Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, for the Asian Games this year.