Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat hilariously teased his brother, Harvinder Phogat, after tying him on the occasion of Rakshabandhan Day on Monday, August 19. Phogat returned to India to a grand welcome from the crowd at the Indira Gandhi International Airport.
Phogat landed in India a day after Court of Arbitration for Sports (CAS) dismissed her petition for a joint-silver medal following her disqualification from her maiden Olympic gold medal bout as she was weighed 100 grams more than the permissible limit of 50kg, her weight category at the Paris Olympics.
After touching down in Delhi, Vinesh Phogat headed straight to her native village in Balali, where the fellow villagers were awaiting her arrival with great anticipation and warmth. The elders of Balali village felicitated her with a gold medal made by them.
However, Vinesh Phogat returned to her village at the right time as she celebrated Raksha Bandhan with her brother. In a video posted by Harvinder Phogat on his Instagram handle, Vinesh jokingly said that her brother gave the money that earned in his whole life.
"Mein hogayi almost 30 saal aur pichle saal bhi isne 500 rupaye diye the. Usne apni puri zindagi mein bas itne hi paise kamaaye hain (pointing to wad of cash), aur wo bhi mujhe de diye." Phogat said.
(I am almost 30 years old, and last year too, he gave me 500 rupees. In his entire life, that's all the money he ever earned , and he gave it all to me.)
Vinesh Phogat hopes of returning home with her maiden Olympic medal shattered due to the disqualification from the Paris Olympic medal and the CAS's dismissal for joint-silver medal after tribunal court for sports accepted Phogat's petition for the hearing.
Vinesh Phogat was one of the medal hopefuls after India at the Paris Olympics 2024. After the semifinal win against Yusneylys Guzman of semifinal, Phogat scripted history by becoming the Indian woman wrestler to reach the final. India had high hopes of Vinesh Phogat going for gold, but it all shattered as she was disqualified from the final because Indian wrestler was weighed 100 grams more than the permissible limit of 50kg.
With her disqualification, the assured silver medal for Vinesh Phogat also slipped from the grasp and all three wins become nullified.
Missing the Olympic medal is the biggest wound in my life': Vinesh Phogat
Vinesh Phogat rues over not winning an Olympic medal for her country despite making her appearances at three editions of the Summer Games. She added that the reception she had received after arriving in India would her the courage to resume wrestling.
"Missing the Olympic medal is the biggest wound in my life. I don't know how much time it would take to heal this wound. I don't know if I would pursue wrestling or not but the kind of courage I got today , I want to use that in the right direction." three-time Olympian said.
"As I got love from my fellow Indians, my village and my family members, it would give me some courage to make this wound heal. Maybe, I could return to wrestling." she added.
Vinesh Phogat announced her retirement hours after her disqualification from the gold medal bout. However, the 29-year-old is willing to withdraw her retirement decision and play till 2032.
