The Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat was disqualified from the 50kg final at the Paris Olympics for exceeding the weight limit by 100 grams. On Saturday, as she arrives at Delhi’s Indra Gandhi International Airport from Paris, the big crowd greeted her heartily. Seeing this, the wrestler breaks down into tears and says, “I thank all the countrymen, I am very fortunate.”
Apart from this, a big celebration is going to happen in Vinesh’s village. An overall delicious 750 kg of boondi ladoos were made for villagers and everyone who came to greet Vinesh at the Balal Hanuman Mandir. The halwais have arrived from the district headquarters in Charkhi Dadri and are making the ladoos from yesterday night. Halwai Mandeep Swami says, “The golden ladoos are for the welcome of the golden girl to our village. It’s a huge day for all of us, and we are lucky that we have been given a chance to make the ladoos.”
“Hamari beti a rahi hai. Every moment will be worth the wait for us. More than 10,000 people are expected. Gold ata toh 50,000 ka crowd ata,” says the 72 year old temple head Ramkumar.
Vinesh Phogat’s appeal to the Court of Arbitration for Sport for a shared silver medal was rejected earlier this week, resulting in her extended stay in Paris. Gagan Narang, the Indian contingent’s chef de mission in Paris and a bronze medallist at the London Olympics, posted a photo with Vinesh at the airport calling her a champion. He emphasised that Vinesh’s motivation did not require an Olympic medal, and praised her for motivating future generations.