Suspense Continues Over Vinesh Phogat's Olympic Silver Medal Verdict By Court Of Arbitration For Sport, New Deadline Is...

Wrestler Vinesh Phogat's Olympic silver medal verdict date has been deferred by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) yet again. While earlier it was said that the verdict would come before the Paris Olympics 2024 ended, it has now been deferred for the second time. The first possible CAS verdict date was August 10, which was then moved to August 13. Now, the new verdict date is August 16. 

Vinesh Phogat made history at the Paris Olympics 2024 by becoming the first Indian female wrestler to enter the final. However, before her 50kg final bout, he was found to be 100 gram overweight and was disqualified. 

The star Indian wrestler then appealed to the CAS, an international body established in 1984 to settle disputes related to sport through arbitration, to give her joint silver based on the fact that she was within the permissible weight limit on the first day of competition when she won three bouts to enter the final.

However, the verdict date of the appeal has now been deferred to August 16.   

"The CAS ad hoc division president has allowed Hon. Dr Annabelle Bennett, Sole Arbitrator in the Vinesh Phogat vs. United World Wrestling (UWW) and the International Olympic Committee (IOC) matter, an extension until 6-00 p.m. (Paris time) on Friday, August 16, 2024," the IOA said in a press statement. 

"Hence, the scheduled Zoom meeting with IOA President Dr PT Usha and Senior Counsel Mr. Harish Salve has been postponed."

Salve was Indian Olympic Association's advocate at the CAS hearing Of Vinesh.

"By Application of Article 18 of the CAS Arbitration Rules for the Olympic Games, the President of the CAS Ad Hoc Division extends the time limit for the Panel to give a decision until 16 August 2024 at 18h00 (Paris Time)," the CAS said in a statement on Tuesday.  

In her appeal, Vinesh has demanded that she be given a joint silver with Cuban wrestler Yusneylis Guzman Lopez, who had lost to her in the semifinals but was promoted to the final following the Indian's disqualification.

Vinesh's legal team has French lawyers Joelle Monlouis, Estelle Ivanova, Habbine Estelle Kim and Charles Amson who helped her and the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) during the filing of the application. They have been provided to her by the Paris Bar and are handling the case pro bono.

In addition, senior counsels Harish Salve and Vidushpat Singhania were also roped in to help her in the case.

Interestingly, the IOA had sent out invites for an online press conference with its president PT Usha and Salve at the exact same time at which the verdict was expected this evening. That invite was withdrawn within minutes of the CAS statement.

Vinesh, who was making her third Olympic appearance here, announced her retirement from the sport a day after her disqualification, saying that she doesn't have the strength to continue.

The world championships bronze-medallist had resorted to desperate measures to save herself from disqualification, including cutting her hair, going without food and water, and working out an entire night.

She ultimately needed IV fluids due to extreme dehydration and her plight evoked sympathy across the board.

Top fellow athletes like javelin thrower Neeraj Chopra, hockey star P R Sreejesh and even cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar threw their weight behind her and advocated a silver medal.

International Olympic Committee (IOC) president Thomas Bach later stated that he could understand her situation but also wondered where would one draw the line after allowing small concessions in certain situations.

"I must say, I have a certain understanding for the wrestler; it's clearly a human touch," Bach had said on Friday.

"Now, it's (appeal) in CAS. We will, at the end, follow the CAS decision. But, again, the international (wrestling) federation, they have to apply their interpretation, their rules. This is their responsibility." Nenad Lalovic, the United World Wresting (UWW) chief, however, remained doubtful that there would be any change in the results as they were only following the rules.

"I am so sorry for what happened, but no matter the size of your country, athletes are athletes. This weigh-in was public, everyone saw what happened. How can we allow someone to compete when we all saw what happened.

"We don't have any other choice but to follow our rules," Lalovic had said.

The CAS ad-hoc division, set up especially for dispute resolution during the Games, had accepted Vinesh's appeal against her ouster on Friday last week.

With PTI inputs