IOA denies report of Antim Panghal being banned for three years following disciplinary breach in Olympics

Controversy erupted on Wednesday when Indian wrestler Antim Panghal's sister was caught using her accreditation inside the Games Village.

The Indian Olympic Association (IOA) have denied a report claiming that Indian wrestler Antim Panghal would be banned for three years following a disciplinary breach during the Paris Olympics. The cops took Antim's sister after she was caught using her accreditation inside the Olympic Village; it was further reported that Antim and her entire entourage would be deported from Paris for the breach.

It was reported that Antim Panghal would be banned for three years by the IOA(Hindustan Times)

On Thursday, PTI reported that the IOA will likely place a three-year ban on the young Indian wrestler following the incident. The association, however, confirmed that no such decision has been taken.

“IMPORTANT: IOA refutes reports that a ban has been imposed on wrestler Antim. It requests media persons to please check with the IOA leadership before posting such reports,” the IOA wrote on their official X account.

Earlier in the day, Panghal also released a statement clarifying the events that took place following her loss in the women's freestyle 53kg round of 16 clash. Antim revealed she travelled back to a hotel where her sister was staying, stating that she was ill and needed rest. Then, her sister arrived at the Olympic Village using her accreditation to collect the wrestler's belongings; she was then taken by the police to “verify” the accreditation.

Once the verification process was complete, her sister was let go.

Antim also addressed the reports of her coaches fighting with a cab driver in Paris, insisting that there was a miscommunication because her entourage did not know the local language.

The wrestler further revealed that she had communicated to the Sports Authority of India (SAI) to book her return flight right after her loss in the round of 16 clash. The revelation came following the report that she will be deported from Paris with her entire entourage.

Antim's controversy wasn't the only one that hit the Indian wrestling contingent on Wednesday, with Vinesh Phogat's disqualification sending shockwaves across the country. Vinesh was disqualified ahead of her gold medal bout in the women's 50kg category due to being overweight by 100 grams during the weigh-in.