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Vinesh Phogat announces comeback to chase Olympic dream
India’s star wrestler says she is stepping back toward LA28 with a ‘heart that’s unafraid and a spirit that refuses to bow’
Vinesh Phogat will return to the mat in her quest to fulfil her Olympic dream at Los Angeles in 2028 (LA28). The two-time world championships medallist had announced her retirement in the aftermath of her dramatic disqualification from the Paris Olympics on the day of her final.
Phogat, who had created a sensation a day before beating Tokyo Olympics champion Yui Susaki in the 50kg weight class, was found overweight during the weigh-in, in the morning of her gold medal match against the US’s Sarah Hildebrandt.
As per the rules, she was disqualified, and Phogat returned empty-handed from her third Olympics. She later announced her retirement from wrestling.
On Friday, Phogat said the fire is still burning within her, and she would step onto the mat with a spirit that refuses to bow. “People kept asking if Paris was the end. For a long time, I didn’t have the answer. I needed to step away from the mat, from the pressure, from the expectations, even from my own ambitions. For the first time in years, I allowed myself to breathe,” Phogat wrote on Instagram.
“I took time to understand the weight of my journey, the highs, the heartbreaks, the sacrifices, the versions of me the world never saw. And somewhere in that reflection, I found the truth: I still love this sport. I still want to compete.”
“So here I am, stepping back toward LA28 with a heart that’s unafraid and a spirit that refuses to bow. And this time, I’m not walking alone; my son is joining my team, my biggest motivation, my little cheerleader on this road to the LA Olympics,” said the 31-year-old.
In 2023, Phogat, Bajrang Punia, and Sakshi Malik led the protests against the then Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh.
She also moved the Court of Arbitration of Sports (CAS) against her disqualification but did not receive a favourable judgement. After the Paris Olympics, Phogat entered politics and joined Congress. She won the Julana assembly constituency in the 2024 Haryana state elections.
A three-time Olympian, Phogat is one of India’s most decorated wrestlers. She won World Championships bronze medals in 2019 and 2022, a gold at the Asian Games in 2018 and bronze in 2014, three Commonwealth Games gold medals, and multiple medals at the Asian Championships, including gold in 2021. An Olympic medal has eluded her in three attempts.
