Indian wrestler’s unlikely Olympic run ends after she misses weight by ‘a few grams’

Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat’s Cinderella run at the Paris Olympics ended Wednesday when she failed to make weight before her gold medal match in the 110-pound weight class.

Phogat started her campaign by upsetting Japan’s Yui Susaki, the defending Olympic champion. Susaki had entered the match with an 82-0 record in international competitions.

Phogat easily won her next two matches to earn a spot in the gold medal match. But the 29-year-old will now return to India without any hardware — she was disqualified from the competition after her most recent weigh-in.

Under Olympic rules, a disqualified wrestler cannot receive any medal. Instead, the next-best finishers move up in the final standings.

“It is with regret that the Indian contingent shares news of the disqualification of Vinesh Phogat from the Women’s Wrestling 50kg class,” Team India wrote on X on Wednesday. “Despite the best efforts by the team through the night, she weighed in a few grams over 50kg this morning.”

With Phogat’s disqualification, American Sarah Hildebrandt will face Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez for a shot at a gold medal. Guzman Lopez lost to Phogat in the semifinals on Tuesday night.

Despite the disappointing end to her unlikely performance, Phogat’s supporters praised her on social media.

“Vinesh, you’ve always been an inspiration and a true champion. Stay strong. I believe in you,” Indian boxer Nikhat Zareen wrote on X, calling the disqualification “a cruel twist of fate.”

“You are India’s pride and an inspiration for each and every Indian,” Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wrote. “Today’s setback hurts. I wish words could express the sense of despair that I am experiencing.”