‘He wants me to quit wrestling’: Vinesh Phogat hits back at WFI president

The WFI had declared Vinesh ineligible to participate in domestic events till June 26, 2026, citing the mandatory six-month notice period linked to athletes returning from retirement under anti-doping rules.“What do you expect me to do? Shall i take sanyaas and stay away? Accept defeat? So that their conspiracy against me succeeds?” Phogat told reporters after meeting WFI officials.Immediately after landing at the nearby Ayodhya airport, Vinesh replied to the WFI’s show-cause notice, claiming that Rule 5.6.1 of the World Anti-Doping Agency Code concerning retired athletes does not apply to her as she had already informed United World Wrestling in June about her decision to resume competition after retirement.As per UWW rules, any athlete seeking to return to competition from retirement must notify the governing body at least six months in advance while remaining available for testing during that period.Vinesh argued that her formal intimation to UWW about her comeback fulfilled the procedural requirements needed to return to competition.She said she had informed the WFI on December 12 that she intended to return to the sport. “Why did you have to wait for six months to give me show cause notice just two days before the competition?” she said.Still, she gave a brief initial response and said she would submit a detailed reply within the stipulated 14 days.WFI sources said the federation was not satisfied with her response and believed the wrestler had addressed only the eligibility aspect while failing to comprehensively answer the broader disciplinary charges mentioned in the detailed notice issued on Saturday.“The reply is not enough. She has not answered the full show-cause notice. Until a disciplinary hearing is conducted and the matter is decided, she cannot be permitted to compete,” a WFI source told PTI.“We will not stop her from coming here but until we have a full explanation, and not just on one issue, she has to wait,” the source added.The controversy erupted after the WFI issued a strongly worded show-cause notice to the celebrated wrestler, accusing her of indiscipline, breach of federation rules and anti-doping-related procedural violations.Before that, Vinesh had claimed that the WFI was trying to block her entry.The WFI also maintained that a “wrong narrative” was being spread suggesting that the selection criteria for the National Open Ranking Tournament had been altered specifically to prevent Vinesh from competing.Vinesh had announced her retirement from the sport after her disqualification from the women’s 50kg gold medal bout at the 2024 Paris Olympics.While her husband Sombir Rathi said that Vinesh never officially announced her retirement and had merely posted about it on social media, the WFI maintained that a communication from UWW in December 2024 acknowledged that she had informed the International Testing Agency about her retirement.The federation has sought her explanation on several charges, including her disqualification from the 2024 Paris Games after failing to make weight, alleged whereabouts failures under anti-doping rules, and competing in two weight categories during the March 2024 selection trials conducted by the then IOA-appointed ad-hoc panel.The weigh-in for women wrestlers at the Ranking event is scheduled between 5 pm and 7 pm on Monday, while the competition will take place on Tuesday.The medal winners at the event are likely to earn a chance to compete at the World Championship trials later this year, though they will not be allowed to participate in the Asian Games trials as per WFI policy.