August 6, Jammu : Vinesh Phogat advanced to the Olympics 2024 women’s 50kg wrestling final after defeating Yusneylis Guzman Lopez (Cuba) 5-0. Vinesh made Olympic history by becoming the first Indian woman to compete in the wrestling final. In the Round of 16, Vinesh Phogat upset world No. 1 and reigning champion Yui Susaki of Japan. In the quarterfinals, he defeated Oksana Livach of Ukraine. To advance to the final, Vinesh will face Yusneylys Guzman Lopez of Cuba. In a fierce quarterfinal match, the 29-year-old Vinesh upset Livach, a former European champion and bronze medallist in the 2018 world tournament, 7-5, to move one step closer to the elusive Olympic medal on her third try.
This came after she shocked four-time world champion and current gold medallist Yui Susaki of Japan on points in the pre-quarterfinals of the wrestling competition, causing the biggest upset of the 2016 Games. Vinesh will compete against Yusneylis Guzman Lopez of Cuba later in the evening in the last-four round. A defeat will send her into the bronze medal playoff, while a victory will guarantee her at least a silver.
Neeraj Chopra, the “Golden Boy” of India, advanced to the men’s javelin throw final with a season-best throw of 89.34 meters. However, Kishore Jena, the other javelin star from India, was unable to advance to the men’s final. After revealing that he had been dealing with an adductor niggle in the lead-up to the Games, Chopra’s incredible performance—the second best of his career—also allayed worries about his fitness. His best distance is still 89.94 meters, which he ran in 2022.
With his incredible throw, Chopra, the current world champion, won the qualification round, which consisted of Groups A and B. Grenada’s Anderson Peters (88.63m), a two-time world champion, finished second both overall and in Group B. Third overall was German thrower Julian Weber (87.76), who won Group A. Arshad Nadeem (Pakistan), the current Commonwealth Games champion, also qualified for the finals with a throw of 86.59 meters in Group B. With a first round throw of 85.63 meters, Czech jakub Vadlejch, the silver medallist from the Tokyo Olympics, finished seventh overall. He was the only athlete to defeat Chopra this year in the Doha Diamond League.
After attempting a subpar throw of 80.73 meters on Thursday, Kishore Jena, the other Indian competitor, withdrew from consideration to go to the 12-man final. He placed 18th overall and eighth in Group A. The top 12 throwers from Groups A and B combined, or everyone who throws 84 meters or more, will move on to the final. Nine throwers actually made it past the automatic final round qualification distance, demonstrating the caliber of the opposition.
In the final, Chopra will have a chance to become only the fifth man in Olympic javelin throw history to defend the title. If he wins gold, and for that matter a medal, he will become the most decorated Indian in Olympics in individual sport.
