Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) “temporarily” suspended no.1 ranked wrestler Vinesh Phogat for indiscipline during her Tokyo Olympics campaign. Sonam Mallik, another grappler has also been issued a notice for misconduct.
Vinesh, who crashed out in the quarter-final stages of her campaign in the Olympics to Belarus, Vanesa Kaladzinskaya, has been given time till the 16th of August to reply to the notice which mentioned indiscipline on three counts.
Vinesh, who had travelled to Tokyo from Hungary where she had trained with coach Woller Akos, had refused to stay at the Games Village and train with the other Indian team members. She also chose to wear a Nike singlet, instead of the ones made by India’s official sponsor, Shiv Naresh.
“This is gross indiscipline. She has been suspended temporarily and barred from all wrestling activities. She can’t compete in any national or other domestic event until she files a reply and WFI takes a final decision,” as quoted by Indian Express.
WFI was pulled up by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) for the indiscipline of its athletes. Officials in Tokyo state that Vinesh created a ruckus when she was allotted a room near her fellow Indian wrestlers-Sonam, Anshu Malik and Seema Bisla- arguing that she might contract coronavirus, as they travelled from India. She did not train with the Indian team, after that. She chose not to train at the same time as the other Indian wrestlers, and when timings clashed, she trained in another arena, according to officials who were present in Tokyo, which angered officials in the Federation.
Sonam Mallik was issued a notice due to her, allegedly, asking Sports Federation of India officials to collect her passport from WFI which was considered an unacceptable attitude. Sonam Mallik, too, failed to secure a medal in her debut Olympics.
