In a stunning political debut, Vinesh Phogat has defeated her BJP rival Yogesh Bairagi in Julana Assembly elections 2024 by 6015 votes. Phogat who joined politics after her Olympic journey has now made her dent in the state politics of Haryana. She secured 65,080 votes and trounced her rival who just received 59,065 votes.

Vinesh’s Leap From Olympics To Politics

The year 2024 proved to be a roller coaster for Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat. After her failure to clinch a medal in the Tokyo Olympics, Phogat stepped into politics and is fighting the Haryana assembly elections for the Julana seat in the Jind district. Vinesh’s opponent in the assembly polls, a tough competition, Yogesh Bairagi, served as a Captain in the Indian Army for nine years. The president of the Haryana BJP Youth Wing, Bairagi had established himself as a formidable candidate in the region as per the early trends in voting.

Wrestler Vinesh Phogat was earlier disqualified from the women’s 50-kilogram freestyle wrestling category in the 2024 Olympics for being overweight by 150 grams. This came as a bitter shock, and it was only further devastating since it halted her Olympic ambitions. Immediately after the Tournament, Vinesh joined INC and declared herself a candidate for assembly elections.

Wrestlers Pin Their Hopes On Phogat

Many women wrestlers are pinning their hopes on Phogat for change. Hearing her raise voice against sexual harassment in the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) many athletes are reconsidering their career. Some actually expect that Vinesh Phogat, if voted for, could be made the state’s sports minister, they expect Vinesh to fight for the wrestlers.