Vinesh Phogat finally gets the Olympics prize she was promised by Haryana govt

Wrestler-turned-politician Vinesh Phogat has opted for a cash prize after the Haryana government recently offered her benefits equivalent to an Olympic silver medallist, asking her to choose from various options.

Phogat, 30, was disqualified from the 2024 Paris Olympics by the scantest amount ahead of her gold medal bout in the 50 kg category.

Before that, the three-time Olympian had long led protests against former chief .

She then went on to successfully contest the Haryana assembly elections from Julana in Jind district in 2024 on a Congress ticket.

Recently, the Haryana government offered three choices to Phogat under its sports policy. Official sources on Thursday, 10 April, said she opted for a cash award of Rs 4 crore. She submitted a letter to the state sports department on Tuesday, 8 April, to inform them of her decision.

Chief minister last month announced that the Haryana cabinet had decided to offer Phogat benefits equivalent to those of an Olympic silver medallist under the state's sports policy.

The state's sports policy provides three types of benefits — a cash prize of Rs 4 crore, an Outstanding Sportsperson (OSP) government job in the ‘Group A’ category and a Haryana Shehri Vikas Pradhikaran (HSVP) plot.

The government recently sought her preference as to which benefit she wished to avail.

During the Haryana assembly's budget session in March, Phogat had reminded Saini of his promise to honour her like a medallist after she was disqualified for being overweight ahead of her gold medal bout in the 50 kg category at last year's Paris Olympics.

"The chief minister had said that Vinesh is our daughter and she would receive the reward as an Olympic silver medallist. This promise has still not been fulfilled," she said in the assembly.

"It is not about money, it is about respect. Many people from across the state tell me that I must have received the cash award," Phogat said.

Saini noted that Phogat was disqualified from the Paris Olympics due to a procedural decision.

Calling Phogat "Haryana's pride", the chief minister tweeted that he would not allow her honour to be diminished.