Vinesh Phogat's Counsel Lists Reasons Behind Her 100g Weight Excess Before Court

Vinesh Phogat's counsel has reportedly cited a tight schedule and the distance between the Athletes' Village and the competition arena as reasons for missing the weight cut at the Olympics 2024.

Vinesh Phogat's counsel cites natural factors & scheduling issues before court for 100g weight excess.

Source : PTI

Vinesh Phogat missed out on an assured silver and a potential gold medal at the Paris Olympics 2024 when she was disqualified before her final bout in the Women's Freestyle 50 kg wrestling event on the grounds of being overweight, as she weighed 100 grams over the 50 kg limit. Phogat is now awaiting a verdict from the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) on her appeal for a joint silver medal. She has reportedly cited a tight schedule and the distance between the Athletes' Village and the competition arena as reasons for missing the weight cut, as arguments continue before the CAS.

According to a report in the Indian Express, Vinesh Phogat's legal team argued that the distance between the Athletes Village and the Champ de Mars Arena, where the wrestling competition was held, contributed to her missing the scheduled weigh-in. The counsel also pointed out that the tight schedule between bouts left her with insufficient time to reduce her weight, which had reached 52.7 kg, 2.7 kgs above the category weight, after the first day of competition.

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Phogat's Counsel Claims 100g Weight Excess Is Minimal & Natural Factors At Play

Phogat's counsel also argued that the 100g excess in weight is minimal, representing only 0.1 to 0.2 percent of the athlete's total weight. They attributed this small increase to natural factors such as water retention due to summer heat, muscle growth from competing multiple times in a day or food consumption for recovery and health.

“The excess of 100g is extremely negligible (representing around 0.1 to 0.2 percent of the athlete's weight) and can easily be caused by the bloating of a human body during summer weather, as the heat makes the human body retain more water, scientifically for survival purposes. It can also be due to muscle mass increase as the athlete competed three times on the same day. It can also be caused by the food consumption of the athlete after the competitions to sustain her health and integrity for the demanding competitions," Phogat's counsel asserted, as per the report.

Vinesh's legal team argued for applying the principle of proportionality, stating that the minor weight excess is not proportional to the severe consequences of excluding her from the finals and stripping her of the silver medal she earned through hard work.

"There would be a manifest disproportion between the level of excess (which excludes any attempt at fraud or manipulation of the athlete) and the irreversible consequences that would result from her non-participation in the finals in addition to the deprivation of her silver medal that was acquired by hard work," the report adds further.