WFI obtains accreditation of Vinesh Phogat's coach and physio for Asia Olympic qualifier

Star wrestler Vinesh Phogat will have access to her personal coach and physio at the Asia Olympic qualifier after the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) obtained their accreditation cards following a special request to the event organisers in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

Phogat, a two-time Olympian, had last week accused the WFI of trying to stop her from competing in the Asia Olympic qualifiers by creating logistical hurdles for her support staff.

However, WFI president Sanjay Singh on Thursday told PTI that they have obtained the accreditation of the two officials.

"We had put in a special request with the organisers to allow access to Vinesh's coach and physio in the competition as it will make the athlete comfortable and they give them accreditation," Singh told PTI.

The 29-year-old Phogat, who won 53kg bronze medals in the 2019 and 2022 World Championships, will be competing in the 50kg category at the Asia Qualifiers beginning in Bishkek from Friday in a bid to seal a berth for the Paris Olympics.

Phogat, who was one of the face of Indian wrestlers' protest against former national federation (WFI) president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, had alleged that her personal coach and physio were being denied accreditation for the tournament, the second last qualifying event for the Paris Games.

"For the past one month, I have been requesting the Government of India (SAI, TOPS) for the accreditation of my coach and physio. Without accreditation, it is not possible for my coach and physio to accompany me to the competition arena," she had written in a social media post.

"But despite repeated requests, I am not getting any concrete answer from anywhere. No one is ready to help. Will the future of players always be played with like this? No stone is being left unturned to mentally harass us. How far is it justified to torture us like this before such an important competition?." WFI had, however, maintained that Phogat's request mail (for accreditation of her coach and physio) came on March 18 but by then it had already sent the entries of the players, coaches and medical staff to the world governing body UWW.