Teenage wrestler Antim Panghal has slammed the move to exempt Vinesh Phogat from the Asian Games trials saying that it is unfair since the veteran wrestler hasn't participated in any international event for a year. Panghal alleged that she also felt cheated in the Commonwealth Games trials against her when the scoreline was 3-3 amid the controversy that has been sparked since the move.
The Wrestling Federation of India's (WFI) ad-hoc panel in a surprising move exempted the wrestlers in the 65kg weight category (men's) and 53kg category (women's) through a circular stating that they have been already chosen. The move has attracted widespread criticism from various coaches and several other wrestlers.
Panghal took to Instagram to share her disappointment after hearing the news asking if she and other wrestlers like her should quit the sport since the ones who have been playing regularly haven't gotten the same privilege.
"Vinesh (Phogat) has been given direct entry for Asian Games despite that she has not practiced for the past one year. I won gold medal in the 2022 Junior World Championship. Even in the Commonwealth Games trial, I had a 3-3 bout with her. Then too, I was cheated.
"Hum pehelwani chhod dein? (Should I quit wrestling?) All I want is a fair trial. I'm not saying that only I can defeat her, there are many women wrestlers out there who can do so," Panghal added.
Watch the video here:
While the ad-hoc panel didn't explicitly mentioned the names of the wrestlers, one of the members Ashok Garg said that it's Banjrang Punia and Vinesh Phogat, the duo who was at the forefront of the wrestlers' protest to get justice against the outgoing WFI president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh on sexual harassment charges.
"Yes, Bajrang and Vinesh have been exempted from trials," Garg confirmed.
