Olympian Vinesh Phogat has vowed to make a strong comeback after failing to qualify for the Asian Games 2026.
"Main wapas aaugi is mat pe (I will return to this mat)," an emotional Vinesh was heard saying after her defeat in the selection trials.
Phogat's Asian Games hopes ended after she suffered a 4-6 loss to Meenakshi in the semi-final of the women's 53kg category selection trials at the Indira Gandhi Stadium in New Delhi on Saturday.
The Haryana wrestler and Congress MLA from Julana had looked in good form earlier in the day. She defeated Jyoti 7-1 in her opening bout before overcoming Nishu in the second round. However, the narrow defeat in the semi-final dashed her hopes of representing India at the continental event.
Despite the setback, Vinesh insisted that she had "not failed."
"I was fighting a whole system. I was on one side and everyone else was on the other," she said, referring to her long-running dispute with the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI).
