False Claim Of Vinesh Phogat Disqualified Due To Cheating Goes Viral

On X, Anupam Kumar Singh, assistant editor of the right-wing news website OpIndia, claimed, "Vinesh Phogat has been caught cheating; her weight was found to be more than the standard. She can be disqualified from the medal. Now don't let anyone say that Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh has bought the entire Olympics."

BOOM found this claim to be misleading. Phogat was disqualified for being 100 grams over the weight limit, and there was no evidence of cheating or dishonesty involved.

Vinesh Phogat reached the finals by defeating Cuba's Guzman Lopez in the semi-finals, becoming the first Indian female wrestler to do so. However, before the final, her weight was found to be 100 grams over the 50 kg limit, leading to her disqualification from the final race.

In 2023, several female wrestlers accused former Bharatiya Janata Party MP and then President of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, of sexual harassment. In support of these women, wrestlers like Vinesh Phogat and Sakshi Malik staged a sit-in protest in Delhi, demanding Brij Bhushan's arrest. He is accused of sexually harassing six adult women wrestlers.

Fact-check

To verify the viral claim, BOOM searched the related keywords on Google. Through this, we found several related media reports.

According to a report by The Hindu, Vinesh Phogat's weight slightly exceeded the 50-kg limit before the women's 50-kg finals against the U.S. 's Sarah Ann Hildebrandt. Despite efforts by the WFI and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) to seek an exemption, they were unable to secure one.

Apart from this, we also found an X post by sports journalist Jonathan Selvaraj, in which he had posted the official statement of the Olympic Committee.

Archive link of the post.

According to the official statement of the Olympic Committee, Vinesh has been disqualified under Article 11 of the International Wrestling Rules. In the final match, Vinesh Phogat will now be replaced by Cuba's Guzman Lopez, whom Vinesh defeated in the semi-finals.

What does Article 11 of the International Wrestling Rules say?

According to Article 11 of the International Wrestling Rules by 'United World Wrestling', a wrestler cannot compete in a weight category other than their own. If an athlete's weight does not meet their designated category, they are disqualified from the competition.

Dr. Dinshaw Pardiwala, the chief medical officer of the Indian team, commented on this situation, stating, "On Tuesday night, Vinesh's weight had increased by 2.7 kg. The entire team stayed up all night, trying every possible method to reduce her weight, except for food and water." He added, "We even took measures like cutting her hair to reduce weight. Unfortunately, we had very little time. If we had just a few more hours, we could have reduced that extra 100 grams. Currently, Vinesh is healthy and has resumed eating and drinking."