Debunking conspiracy theories surrounding Vinesh Phogat's disqualification

The moment the news of Vinesh Phogat's disqualification from the gold medal bout in the women's 50kg category at the 2024 Paris Olympics emerged, the nation went into a frenzy.

Social media, television news channels, and digital media began spinning various theories leaving fan clueless about what had actually transpired.

With misinformation and false narratives running riot, conspiracy theories began emerging.

The Bridge debunks the conspiracy theories and misinformation surrounding the Vinesh Phogat disqualification saga.

Claim: Vinesh Phogat could have faked an injury, avoided the weigh-in and grabbed a silver!

A mere one hour after Vinesh's disqualification became public, social media posts stated that she could have faked an injury and assured herself of a silver without grappling in the gold medal match.

But is that possible?

The answer is a plain and simple no.

As per United World Wrestling (UWW), if an athlete is injured and cannot continue the bout, he/she will lose the match due to injury. The concerned athlete will not have to attend the second weigh-in and he/she will be ranked based on the points that were earned until the injury was sustained. If the injured athlete is ready to compete in the next match, the athlete has to receive the approval of the UWW Doctor.

For all other types of injuries or diseases that happen after the first day of competition and out of competition, the concerned athlete will have to attend the second weigh-in otherwise they will be eliminated from the competition and ranked last, without rank.

So, by feigning an injury, Vinesh could not have avoided the weigh-in or the eventual gold medal bout itself.

Claim: Vinesh was overweight by 2kg and as since UWW allows a 2kg tolerance, disqualifying Vinesh was unfair!

Another narrative that quickly became viral was that Vinesh was not just 100 or 150 grams overweight but was in fact overweight by 2kg and that UWW allows a 2kg grace.

Yes, UWW does allow a 2kg grace but that is just for the ranking series conducted by UWW and not for Olympic Games.

At the Olympics, there is no grace and the weight needs to be absolutely spot on in keeping with the associated category.

Vinesh failed to make the designated cut during the weigh-in - according to reports, she weighed in at 50.1kg on Wednesday morning.

Claim: IOA and the Indian government can protest seeking the overturning of the disqualification verdict!

Another big narrative that started floating was that the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) would register their protest against the decision and the disqualification verdict might be overturned.

While protests can be filed, the IOA works with rules that are literally cast in stone and applied to all countries equally.

The UWW rules pertaining to making weight per a given category are clear and the IOA or any other authority cannot make exemptions to suit the emotionally charged appeals of a national Olympic association.

Claim: Vinesh Phogat was responsible for her disqualification!

A lot of blame was immediately directed towards the wrestler and the narrative of Vinesh Phogat being casual in approach began emerging.

There is no way Vinesh Phogat can be blamed for this unfortunate incident. Vinesh tried her best to shed excess weight.

From spending the night in a sauna and fasting to getting a hair cut and shortening clothes, she tried it all.

Also, reports suggested that her blood was drained in an attempt to reduce body weight.

With Vinesh going through the grind and doing everything possible in the book to make the desired weight, its utterly unfair to place the blame on her.

Claim: Politics was involved in Vinesh's disqualification!

The moment this news of Vinesh's disqualification broke, the Indian political sphere became active with opposition staging a protest on the stairs of the Parliament on Wednesday.

'Justice for Vinesh' - they screamed in unison, while hinting at a possible sabotage.

While the chain of events that led to the eventual weigh-in debacle are still unknow, sabotage is highly unlikely.

The support staff and the athlete are a close knit unit and no external intervention is permitted, more so on the cusp of a gold medal match.

What's more, with reports confirming that Vinesh fasted the entire night, the ingestion of substance to contribute to her weight without her knowledge is theory that is simply not plausible.

The phenomenon of Vinesh Phogat having to shed weight is the natural course of action followed by any athlete in any combat sport where fighters constantly gain and shed weight to meet the requirements of their category.

All that one can do at the moment is process the news of disqualification and thereafter, wait for Vinesh Phogat to reveal what transpired in the hours leading up to the weigh-in.