Vinesh Phogat has broken her silence regarding her suspension by the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI). She has given a very elaborate statement regarding her issues before the Olympics and what she is feeling after her performance.
She felt that people are having misperceptions regarding her performance in Tokyo. To her, everybody is demonizing her because she lost one “medal”.
She has talked about her difficulties regarding her preparation for these Olympics. The Olympian suffered a concussion in 2017 and has to still deal with its after-effects. The officials gave a physio from the shooting team to her, who couldn’t understand the rigours of a different sport. Her physical difficulties regarding her weight cut also didn’t help.
She lost to Belarus representative Vanesa Kaladzinskaya Tiako in her final eight matches. Phogat clarified that she indeed was training with Seema Bisla, after some time.
Phogat has stated that she was diagnosed with depression in 2019 after she cut weight. She talks about the emotional and physical toll Covid-19 was on her. She contracted it twice, leading her not to be able to ingest protein. Her coach, Woller has been supportive of her. She has stated like Simone Biles, she too wasn’t mentally prepared but was judged very harshly because she didn’t win a medal in the Olympics.
WFI has suspended Phogat for indiscipline. The chief has also accused coach Woller Akos of embezzling money. Phogat, allegedly, did not train with the Indian wrestlers and was creating a ruckus. She also wore a Nike singlet, instead of the official Indian one.
