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Wrestler Vinesh Phogat Qualifies for 2020 Olympics In Tokyo

Phogat qualified for the Olympics after beating American Sarah Hildebrandt at the World Championships at Kazakhstan’s Nur Sultan.
Vinesh Phogat in a file photo.
China News Service via Getty Images
Vinesh Phogat in a file photo.

Wrestler Vinesh Phogat (53kg) became the first Indian woman to qualify for the 2020 Olympics to be held in Tokyo.

PTI reported that Phogat qualified for the Olympics after beating American Sarah Hildebrandt at the World Championships at Kazakhstan’s Nur Sultan on Wednesday.

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The report said that 25-year-old Phogat scored an impressive 8-2 win over the world championship silver medallist to secure her place at the Tokyo Games.

Vinesh will wrestle in the bronze-medal bout against Maria Prevolaraki of Greece later on Wednesday.

Earlier, she had stormed to a 5-0 win over Ukraine’s Yuliya Khalvadzhy in the first round of repechage in the 53kg category to remain in contention for an Olympic quota and a bronze medal.

Phogat has won several medals representing India, including a gold at the 2018 Asian Games, at the 2014 Commonwealth Games and a bronze at the 2019 Asian Wrestling Championships.

She has been a recipient of the Arjuna Awards in 2016.

(With PTI inputs)

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.