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Wrestler Vinesh Phogat arrived at the Indira Gandhi Stadium here early on Saturday morning to participate in the Asian Games 2026 selection trials after the Supreme Court on Friday permitted the Olympian to compete while expressing concern over judicial interference in sports administration matters.
Phogat will compete in the 53kg category during the trials, although she has participated in the 50kg category in her last few international events, including the Paris Olympics 2024. Women CRPF (Central Reserve Police Force) personnel and RAF (Rapid Action Force) have been deployed at IG Stadium for the Asian Games women's selection trials. As directed by the Delhi High Court, Aditi Chauhan from the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) and M.M. Somaiya from the Sports Authority of India (SAI) will be present as observers during the trials at the IG Stadium. Earlier on Friday, while granting interim relief to Phogat, the Supreme Court also sought her response to the petition filed by the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) challenging her participation in the trials. The matter is scheduled to be heard next on Monday, June 1. In its May 22 order, the Delhi High Court had directed that Phogat be allowed to participate in the selection trials scheduled for May 30 and 31. The High Court further ordered that the trials be video-recorded and conducted under the supervision of independent observers appointed by the SAI and the IOA to ensure transparency in the selection process. The directions were issued by a Division Bench comprising Chief Justice Devendra Kumar Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia while hearing Phogat's appeal against an interim order passed by a single-judge Bench. The single judge had declined to grant interim relief in her pending writ petition challenging the WFI's selection policy as well as a show-cause notice issued against her. Phogat had challenged the WFI's Asian Games Selection Policy dated February 25, 2026, and a subsequent circular dated May 6, 2026, which restricted eligibility for the selection trials to medal winners from specified domestic tournaments held in 2025 and 2026. According to the order, Phogat informed the International Testing Agency (ITA) in December 2024 that she was taking a sabbatical due to pregnancy and intended to return to competition later. She gave birth to her first child in July 2025 and resumed training thereafter. The ITA subsequently confirmed that she would be eligible to compete from January 1, 2026, onwards. The Court observed that due to her maternity-related absence, Phogat could not participate in the championships that formed the basis for eligibility under the WFI policy, resulting in her exclusion from the selection trials. The Bench prima facie found the policy and circular to be arbitrary and discriminatory, as they restricted participation only to medal winners from specific events, thereby excluding athletes like Phogat. The Court also made strong remarks against observations made by the WFI in the show-cause notice issued to Phogat over the Paris Olympics 2024 weigh-in controversy. Referring to remarks describing the incident as a "national embarrassment," the Bench termed the observations "deplorable" and said they appeared vindictive and premeditated, particularly when the Court of Arbitration for Sport had already observed that there was no wrongdoing on Phogat's part. At the same time, the Division Bench clarified that it had not expressed any final opinion on the merits of the case and that the pending writ petition before the single judge would be decided independently on its own merits. (ANI)
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