Top five achievements of Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat

The Olympian has a promising list of achievements already under her belt.

Vinesh Phogat is one of the finest wrestlers India currently has. The country takes a lot of pride in the wrestling contingent who often perform brilliantly on the international stage. Vinesh Phogat is one of the best prospects the country has right now in the women’s wrestling sphere. She comes from the Phogat family which has produced incredible wrestlers like Geeta Phogat and Babita Kumari.

Similar to her family members, Vinesh is also an internationally acclaimed wrestler who has won several accolades in her career. The 27-year-old has many honors under her belt and continues to hold high expectations from her fans. She is a force to reckon with in the Asian circuit and was one of the participants at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. 

Here are the top five achievements from the career of Vinesh Phogat which define her brilliance. 

5. Multiple medals in Asian Championships

Vinesh Phogat loves to play in the Asian Championships and her performances have been great in the past. The Indian has won one gold, three silver and four bronze medals overall in different editions of the Asian Championship.

Her first major senior medal was the bronze during the 2013 Asian Championships held in New Delhi. She won the bronze in the 51 kg category. Vinesh went on to win three silver and bronze medals each until she finally bagged the gold recently. Phogat won her first-ever Asian Championships gold in the 2021 Almaty games in 2021.

4. World Championship bronze medal

Vinesh Phogat bagged a maiden World Championship medal in the women’s 53 kg category in 2019. The Indian grappler became the first wrestler to qualify for the Tokyo Olympics by virtue of her performance in the tournament.

She was up against Maria Prevolaraki in the bronze medal match of the tournament. Vinesh collected her first World Championship medal by pinning the Greek wrestler. The performance instilled a great sense of confidence within Phogat as she began to hit form right before the Olympics. However, the COVID-19 pandemic halted all sporting activity, thus affecting her rhythm. 

3. Asian Games gold medal

Vinesh Phogat has won the gold medal in the prestigious Asian Games as well. She won the top prize while contesting in the 50 kg category at the 2018 Asian Games held in Jakarta, Indonesia. By doing so, she became the first Indian female wrestler to win a gold medal in both Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games.

Japan’s Yuki Irie was Phogat’s opponent in the final. However, Haryana native overpowered the Japanese and managed to win the bout by a a score of 6-2. 

2. Gold medals at Commonwealth Games

Vinesh Phogat is a two-time Commonwealth Games gold medallist. She is also the first-ever female wrestler from India to win gold medals at the Asian Games and the Commonwealth Games. Incidentally, she won gold in both multi-sport events in the same year. Phogat won the second of her two CWG gold medals during the 2018 Gold Coast Games in Australia.

Her first triumph at the Commonwealth Games came during the 2014 edition held in Glasgow, Scotland. She contested in the 48kg category in 2014 and the 50kg category in 2018 respectively, winning gold on both occasions. 

1. Individual honors

Several individual honors have come in Vinesh Phogat’s way. She has received recognition for her contribution to the sport and her incredible performances on the international stage. Vinesh is the recipient of the prestigious Arjuna Award in 2016 for exemplary performance in the field of sports. 

She has also received the Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna in 2020, which is the highest sporting honor in India. Apart from that, she has also received a nomination for the Laureus World Sports Awards in 2019, the first for an Indian athlete. 

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