Vinesh Phogat announces return to wrestling after 15-month break

Vinesh Phogat, the celebrated wrestler-turned-politician, is set to make a comeback to the wrestling mat nearly one year and three months after announcing her retirement from international competition following the Paris Olympics.

Currently a Congress MLA from the Julana Assembly segment in Jind district, Vinesh embraced motherhood in July 2025. She is the cousin of Commonwealth Games gold medallists Geeta and Babita Phogat, and was introduced to wrestling at a young age by her uncle, Dronacharya awardee Mahavir Phogat. She also played a key role in leading the protest against former Wrestling Federation of India president Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh in Delhi.

Vinesh announced her return to competitive wrestling through a post on her social media account today. Expressing her emotions, she wrote, “I’m stepping back toward LA28 (Olympics to be held in Los Angeles in 2028) with a heart that’s unafraid and a spirit that refuses to bow. My son is joining my team… my little cheerleader on this road to the LA Olympics.”

Opening her post on X with the line “People kept asking if Paris was the end,” she revealed how she herself had grappled with the question: “For a long time, I didn’t have the answer. I needed to step away from the mat, from the pressure, from the expectations, even from my own ambitions. For the first time in years, I allowed myself to breathe.”

Reflecting on her journey, she wrote, “It took time to understand the weight of my journey — the highs, the heartbreaks, the sacrifices, the versions of me the world never saw.” In that silence, she said she rediscovered her inner spark: “And somewhere in that reflection, I found the truth — I still love this sport. I still want to compete… the fire never left.”

Vinesh narrowly missed a medal at the Paris Olympics after reaching the final but was disqualified for being 100 grams overweight ahead of the gold medal bout. Her achievements include a gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games and multiple World Championship medals.