Is Vinesh Phogat the first Indian female wrestler to qualify for a final in the Olympics? 

On Tuesday, August 6, Vinesh Phogat became the first Indian female wrestler to make her way into the final of the Olympics. She now has a chance to script history by becoming the first wrestler from India to win a gold medal in the history of the quadrennial event.

Back in 2016, Phogat suffered heartbreak after her campaign at the Rio Olympics ended due to a freak injury. The Haryana-born sobbed on the mat as her dream of winning a medal in the showpiece event was crushed after she dislocated her knee.

At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, she was the No. 1 wrestler in her category and started handsomely with a 7-1 victory over Sofia Mattson of Sweden, a bronze medallist from the Rio Olympics. However, Vinesh Phogat faced a shocking defeat to Belarus’ Vanesa Kaladzinskya in the quarterfinals, losing 3-9.

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Vinesh Phogat turns it around at Paris Olympics 2024

After the agony of Rio and Tokyo, Vinesh Phogat has made amends at the Paris Olympics 2024. She started by pulling off a 3-2 victory over Japan’s Yui Susaki, who was the defending champion after winning the gold medal in Tokyo. The win seemed even more incredible as Susaki had also won four gold medals in World Champions and two golds at the Asian Championships.

In the quarterfinals, Vinesh beat Ukraine’s Oksana Livach 7-5 and stormed into the semifinals. Thereafter, she got the better of Cuba’s Yusneylys Guzman (5-0) to book her berth in the final. In the summit clash on Wednesday, Phogat will be up against USA’s Sarah Hildebrandt, who won bronze in Tokyo and has four World Championship medals to her name.

Sakshi Malik was the first Indian female wrestler to win a wrestling medal for India at the Olympics when she clinched bronze in Tokyo. Vinesh has a chance to pull off something extremely special in Paris.