In a stunning reversal that has reignited the spirits of Indian sports fans, champion wrestler Vinesh Phogat announced on Friday that her wrestling career is not over. Just months after a devastating disqualification in the Paris Olympics gold medal bout led her to announce retirement—and a swift move into politics—Phogat has declared her intention to return to the mat, targeting an elusive Olympic medal at the Los Angeles Games in 2028.
Phogat’s initial retirement announcement was met with an outpouring of sympathy and respect. Her disqualification in Paris was a brutal climax to years of sacrifice, representing not just a personal loss but a national heartbreak. She then made a dramatic career pivot, joining the Congress party and, in a testament to her widespread appeal, winning the Haryana assembly election from Julana constituency, defeating BJP’s Yogesh Bajrangi.
Yet, as she settled into her new political role, a question lingered, both in the public mind and in her own: "Was Paris the end?"
"In a long time, I didn’t have the answer," Phogat shared in a heartfelt post on X. "I needed to step away from the mat, from the pressure, from the expectations, even from my own ambitions. For the first time in years, I allowed myself to breathe."
This period of distance proved crucial. Away from the grueling routine and the roaring crowds, Phogat engaged in a profound reckoning with her journey. "I took time to understand the weight of my journey—the highs, the heartbreaks, the sacrifices, the versions of me the world never saw," she wrote. The conclusion was simple and powerful: "I still love this sport. I still want to compete."
What emerged from this silence was a rediscovery of a fundamental truth. "In that silence, I found something I'd forgotten—'the fire never left'. It was only buried under exhaustion and noise," Phogat revealed. She described wrestling as an inseparable part of her identity: "The discipline, the routine, the fight... it's in my system. No matter how far I walked away, a part of me stayed on the mat."
This announcement places Phogat in a unique position in Indian athletics—an active, world-class athlete simultaneously serving as an elected legislator. The balancing act will be formidable, but the Phogat family is no stranger to breaking molds. Her cousin, Babita Phogat, herself a decorated wrestler, paved the way for this dual path by contesting the 2019 assembly elections from Charkhi Dadri.
The quest for an Olympic medal has been a poignant narrative in Phogat's career. A severe knee injury shattered her dreams at Rio 2016. At Tokyo 2020, she entered as a top medal hope but suffered a shock defeat. Paris 2024 brought her agonizingly close—within touching distance of gold—before fate intervened with a disqualification.
The LA 2028 bid, therefore, is more than another attempt; it is a pursuit of redemption, a four-year campaign to rewrite a story of near-misses. At 33 now, Phogat will be 37 by the time of the Los Angeles Games, competing in a sport that demands peak physical prowess. Her decision is a testament to extraordinary resilience and self-belief.
Vinesh Phogat’s journey has always resonated beyond sports, intertwined with her and her family’s vocal advocacy for wrestlers’ rights and safety. Her return to wrestling adds a compelling new chapter to this legacy. It is a story of listening to one's inner voice after a very public setback, of choosing passion even after securing a successful alternative career.
As she prepares to juggle legislative responsibilities in Haryana with the brutal training regimen of an Olympic hopeful, Phogat sends a powerful message: some dreams are too stubborn to be shelved. For Indian sports, her decision is a thrilling promise—the chance to see one of its fiercest competitors take one more shot at glory, turning the heartbreak of Paris into the hope of LA. The mat, it seems, was always waiting for her return.
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