NEW DELHI: The Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) has announced that it will pronounce its verdict on Vinesh Phogat's appeal for a joint silver medal in the women's 50kg competition at the Paris Olympics before the end of the Games. The multisport event will conclude with the closing ceremony on August 11.
It's been learnt that the hearing into the matter by an ad-hoc division of CAS, which was established in Paris for the redressal of disputes arising out of the Games, concluded on Friday evening and the verdict has been reserved which could be delivered on Saturday.
Vinesh was represented by renowned senior counsels Harish Salve and Vidushpat Singhania, who were brought in by the Indian Olympic Association (IOA) on Thursday. According to sources, the arguments presented by counsels revolved around Vinesh maintaining her weight on the first day of weigh in and that her being overweight by mere 100 grams was part of bodily process.
It's been revealed that Vinesh's original appeal for the reinstatement of her gold medal bout was rejected by a sole arbitrator (Hon. Dr Annabelle Bennett AC SC) in CAS, prompting the IOA and Vinesh to modify their appeal for a shared silver with Cuban Yusneylis Guzman Lopez. CAS accepted her second modified plea and agreed to hear it.
"The applicant initially sought a decision from the CAS ad-hoc division annulling the challenged decision and ordering another weigh in before the final match as well as a declaration that she be declared eligible and qualified to participate in the final. However, she did not request urgent interim measures. The CAS ad-hoc division procedure is fast, but it was not possible for a decision on the merits to be issued within an hour, bearing in mind that the respondent United World Wrestling (UWW) would have had to be heard first. The procedure is, however, ongoing and the applicant has confirmed that she seeks the annulment of the challenged decision and that she requests to be awarded a (shared) silver medal," CAS said in a statement.
International Olympic Association's (IOC) president Thomas Bach, on Friday commented on the issue and said that one cannot have two silver medals in one category and the regulations of the international federation have to be followed. "If you ask generally about having two silver medals in one category then my answer is no. There are the regulations of the international federation that have to be followed and United World Wrestling was taking this decision," Bach said.
