Shashi Tharoor's message in Hindi for wrestler Vinesh Phogat: ‘System se…’
Vinesh Phogat announced her retirement a day after she was disqualified for being 100gm overweight ahead of her 50kg category gold medal bout in the Olympics.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, known for his eloquent use of English vocabulary, posted a message in Hindi on Thursday for wrestler Vinesh Phogat after she announced her retirement from the sport.
Phogat made the announcement a day after she was disqualified and missed out on the opportunity to win a medal at the Paris Olympics.
"Iss system se pak gyi hai ye ladki, ladte ladte thak gyi hai ye ladki (This girl is fed up with the system. She is tired of fighting)," Tharoor wrote on X.
Vinesh Phogat made history on Tuesday by becoming the first Indian woman wrestler to reach the final at an Olympics.
She first defeated defending world and Olympic champion Yui Susaki from Japan, the first international loss of her career. Later, she beat Cuba's Yusneylys Guzman 5-0 in the semi-final match.
However, Phogat was disqualified from the Paris Olympics after weighing in a few kilograms over her 50kg weight division in Wednesday morning’s weigh-in.
Also Read | Vinesh disqualification adds to India's string of misfortunes at Paris Olympics
“Wrestling beat me, I lost…please forgive me ..your dream. My courage, everything is broken. I don’t have any more strength left in me. Goodbye wrestling 2001-2024. I will always be indebted to you all..sorry.,” she wrote while announcing her retirement on X.
Who is Vinesh Phogat?
Vinesh is a three-time Olympian and has won gold medals in both the Asian and Commonwealth Games.
Since last year, she has also been the face of fierce protests against former Wrestling Federation of India head Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, who has been accused of sexual harassment by women wrestlers.
Vinesh, who has always competed in the 53kg category, was forced to come down to 50kg just months before the Games after the Paris quota place in that division was locked by Antim Panghal.
Panghal lost in the opening round itself and is facing deportation after trying to facilitate her sister Nisha's access to the Games Village on her accreditation card.