New Delhi: Former Indian cricket team captain Sourav Ganguly said that Vinesh Phogat deserves a silver medal at the Paris Olympics. His comments comes after legendary cricketer Sachin Tendulkar said that the Indian wrestler was robbed off a medal.
Vinesh was assured of a medal after qualifying for the final of the women’s 50kg freestyle after three wins on the bounce. However, on August 7, the 25-year-old grappler was disqualified from the event after she was found overweight ahead of her gold medal match. Reports suggested that she gained 100-150 grams more on the day of her second weigh-in.
The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) has appealed before the Court of Arbitration of Sport (CAS) that Vinesh should be granted silver medal after she made it to the final, though the United World Wrestling (UWW) rules suggest that wrestler will be out of the competition if found overweight in any weigh-ins.
Ganguly, who was present at the Kolkata Food Festival on Sunday in the West Bengal capital, was asked by the reporters on the Haryana-based wrestler’s case. The former India skipper responded, as quoted by news agency PTI:
“I don’t know the exact rule, but I’m sure that when she reached the finals, she must have qualified properly.
“So when you go to the finals, it’s either a gold or silver medal. Whether she was disqualified wrongfully or not, I don’t know, but she deserves the silver medal at least,” he added.
America’s Sarah Hildebrandt won the gold medal in the women’s 50kg freestyle and Cuban grappler Yusnevlis Guzman Lopez, who lost to Vinesh in the semi-final, settled for the silver. Lopez was promoted to the final after the Indian wrestler was disqualified from the Paris Olympics.
Sachin Tendulkar questions logic behind Vinesh not being awarded medal
Sachin Tendulkar, who leads the charts of most runs in international cricket (34357), asked for the rules to be revisited and opined that Vinesh was robbed off a medal by defying logic and sporting sense.
“Every sport has rules and those rules need to be seen in context, maybe even revisited at times. Vinesh Phogat qualified fair and square for the finals. Her disqualification by weight, was before the finals, and hence, for her to be robbed of a deserving silver defies logic and sporting sense,” an excerpt from Tendulkar’s statement read.
Vinesh’s CAS verdict is expected to be out on Tuesday (August 13) at 9:30 PM (IST).
Vinesh Phogat was assured of a medal after qualifying for the final of the women’s 50kg freestyle after three wins on the bounce before she was disqualified ahead of her gold medal match due to overweight. Other Sports Sports News: Latest Cricket News, Cricket Live Score, Sports Breaking News from Sports Today
