India's Vinesh Phogat Fails to Make Weight Prior to Olympic Final

In an unprecedented situation, 50 kg women’s freestyle finalist Vinesh Phogat of India failed to make weight on Wednesday prior to her gold medal match with American Sarah Hildebrandt. United World Wrestling announced that instead of a finals forfeit, which is the normal procedure were this to happen in an American tournament, the opponent that Phogat defeated in the semifinals will be pulled into the finals. That leaves Phogat without a medal and she will finish in 16th place at the weight class. 

With her 10-0 win over Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez, Phogat appeared to be the first Indian woman to make an Olympic final and claim at least a silver medal. Now, she will not medal. 

Since 2019, Phogat had competed solely at 53 kg; however, she dropped down to 50 kg for the 2024 Olympic run. Phogat looked significantly larger than most of her competition and the weight cut was likely very difficult for her. 

For the second consecutive day, Phogat has stolen the early morning wrestling headlines. Just over 24 hours ago, she pulled the upset of the tournament by handing 2020 Olympic champion Yui Susaki (Japan) her first international loss.