Wrestling: Vinesh Phogat qualifies for Paris Olympics' quota
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Kyrgyzstan: Indian star wrestler Vinesh Phogat qualified for the Paris Olympics quota for women's 50 kg category at the Asian Olympic Qualifier here on Saturday. One of the faces of the protests against former wrestling body chief and BJP leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh over sexual harassment charges against him, Vinesh did not concede a single point before pinning her opponent down on Saturday, PTI reported.
Vinesh is entering the Olympics for the third time in a row. She attended the Rio Games in 2016 and the Tokyo Games in 2020.
En route to her victory in the Asian Qualifier, she defeated Miran Cheon of Korea in one minute and 39 seconds. Later, Cambodia's Samanang Dit and Kazakh's Laura Ganikyzy.
The finalists of the qualifiers are awarded quota places in the Paris Olympics.
Vinesh Phogat became the first Indian woman wrestler to win a gold at both the Commonwealth and Asian Games. She is the only Indian woman wrestler to win multiple medals at the World Wrestling Championships. Phogat became the first Indian athlete to be nominated for the Laureus World Sports Awards in 2019
For India, there are three more grapplers in the semifinals. They are Anshu Malik (57kg), Mansi Ahlawat (62kg) and Reetika (76kg).
Nisha Dahiya (68 kg) was the only Indian not to qualify for the semifinals.