Wrestling
Sangeeta Phogat dedicates her bronze medal to women fighting crime
Returning to action after being a central figure in the wrestler's protest, Sangeeta Phogat won a bornze medal in Hungary. Her win, however, drew disparate reactions.
Sangeeta Phogat at the podium (Twitter/SangeetaPhogat)
Sangeeta Phogat, one of the six wrestlers who protested against WFI chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, on Saturday won a bronze medal in the 59kg category at the Hungary Ranking Series tournament.
"I am very emotional at this moment. This medal is not mine only. I dedicate this medal to all the fighting women of the world who are fighting against crimes against women," Sangeeta said after her medal on Twitter.
Sangeeta began with a crushing defeat by fall but bounced back with a win in her second bout. She lost her semifinal but won the bronze play-off 6-2 against young Hungarian Viktoria Borsos, the U-20 World Championship silver medallist. One win and one defeat in six-wrestler draw put her in the semifinal against Poland’s Magdalena Urszula Glodek.
Sangeeta might have made a triumphant return to the mat, but the news of her performance caused a bit of a wrestling match between political camps on Twitter.
While there were some accounts celebrating the story of her return...
... there were more than a few accounts who chose to celebrate the fact that she had lost her first match 0-10.
Sangeeta, who is the wife of Olympic bronze medalist Bajrang Punia and sister of Commonwealth Games gold medalist Geeta Phogat, was one of the six wrestlers who had been protesting in New Delhi earlier this year demanding the removal of the incumbent WFI chief.
