Vinesh Phogat was disqualified for failing to meet the weight category requirements, which are rigidly enforced by the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the relevant wrestling federations.
IOA chief PT Usha expressed shock at the disqualification of Vinesh Phogat, adding that they did everything to help her meet the competition requirements.
The Wrestling Federation of India announced the trials on March 10-11, including the names of star grapplers Bajrang (65kg freestyle), Vinesh (55kg), and Sakshi (62kg), who declared her retirement from the sport on the day Sanjay Singh was elected president.
After his victory, Sanjay Kumar Singh said, “Wrestlers who want to do politics can do politics, those who want to do wrestling will do wrestling. We will politically answer the wrestlers who want to do politics.”
Vinesh Phogat will now be replaced by Antim Panghal, who won the 53 kg trials, on India's Asian Games team. The gold medalist from the 2018 Asian Games expressed her extreme disappointment at not being able to defend her title in this edition, which will be held in Hangzhou beginning on September 23.
The Delhi HC dismissed the plea challenging the exemption granted to wresters Bajrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat that allowed their direct entry into Asian Games 2023.