Wrestler Vinesh Phogat makes retirement U-turn, eyes glory at 2028 LA Olympics

Wrestler-turned-politician Vinesh Phogat has set her sights on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics after she announced a retirement U-turn on Friday (Dec 12). Phogat, disqualified for being overweight during the 2024 Paris Olympics, had announced her retirement from the sport in the aftermath of the incident. However, she has now vowed to return back stronger and set her sights on the 2028 Games, which take place in Los Angeles.

Phogat sets sights on LA 2028

“People kept asking if Paris was the end. For a long time, I didn't have the answer. I needed to step away from the mat, from the pressure, from the expectations, even from my own ambitions. For the first time in years, I allowed myself to breathe,” Phogat wrote in an Instagram post.

"I took time to understand the weight of my journey, the highs, the heartbreaks, the sacrifices, the versions of me the world never saw. And somewhere in that reflection, I found the truth: I still love this sport. I still want to compete.

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"In that silence, I found something I'd forgotten 'the fire never left'. It was only buried under exhaustion and noise. The discipline, the routine, the fight... it's in my system. No matter how far I walked away, a part of me stayed on the mat.

“So here I am, stepping back toward LA28 with a heart that's unafraid and a spirit that refuses to bow,” she added.

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What happened at Paris Olympics?

Phogat got disqualified for being overweight in the 50kg women’s freestyle wrestling at the Paris Olympics, where she was set to contest for the gold medal. The disqualification came on the morning of her gold medal match, meaning India missed out on a guaranteed medal, which could have been a gold as well. After the disqualification, Phogat was in the limelight for refusing to speak on a phone call with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. She also alleged that the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) head, P.T. Usha, wanted to record her social post.

Phogat would later join Rahul Gandhi-led Indian National Congress (INC) and successfully contest the Julana seat in the Haryana Assembly polls in 2024. She would win her seat with a vote share of 65080, 6015 more than the BJP candidate, Yogesh.

In July 2025, Phogat also gave birth to a baby boy with her partner, Somvir Rathee, who is also a wrestler.