The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has announced the deadline for its verdict on Vinesh Phogat's disqualification row. As per a press release issued by the sports governing body that settles disputes through arbitration, the decision on Vinesh's plea for a silver medal at the Paris Olympics will be announced by 18:00 Paris time (9:30 IST) on Saturday, August 10.
The President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) Thomas Bach has already confirmed that the IOC will abide by the judgement of the CAS in Vinesh's case. "Now it's in CAS, we will in the end follow the CAS decision," said Bach during a press conference.
Notably, Vinesh was not allowed to contest in the gold medal bout in the 50kg weight category after her weight exceeded the permissible limits. As a consequence, the veteran Indian grappler was disqualified and not awarded any medal.
Disheartened by the decision, Vinesh announced her retirement from wrestling and thanked her mother and all her fans for their constant support throughout her career.
Vinesh's campaign in Paris began with a resounding win as she defeated the reigning Olympic champion Yui Susaki of Japan in the 50kg weight category. The win acted as a major boost for the Indian grappler as it put an end to Susaki's unbeaten run of 82 bouts.
The wrestler from Charkhi Dadri, Haryana locked horns with Oksana Livach of Ukraine in the quarterfinals and scraped past her by a margin of 7-5. Vinesh then squared off against Yusneylys Guzmán of Cuba to book a berth in the gold medal bout.
The match turned out to be a low-scoring one and it witnessed Vinesh's tactical brilliance. The veteran wrestler showed plenty of composure during the contest and eventually got the better of her opponent by 5-0. She was due to take the mat against the USA's Sarah Hildebrandt in the summit clash before her campaign came to a tragic end.
