Vinesh Phogat To Build World-Class Sports Academy For Young Athletes

Former Indian wrestler Vinesh Phogat has announced that she would build a world-class sports academy for young athletes with the Rs 4 crore prize money that she received from the Haryana government. Phogat received this award under Haryana's premier sports policy, which allows medal-winning athletes to choose between a government job, a land allotment, or a cash reward. The policy grants Rs. 6 crore for an Olympic gold, Rs. 4 crore for silver, and Rs. 2.5 crore for bronze. Despite being disqualified from the women's 50kg category due to a slight weight infraction, Phogat was still awarded the cash prize equivalent to a silver medalist.

Vinesh took to his official social media handle and announced the decision to build the sports academy.

"When a player's hard work is recognised, that is the real victory. The public has given me a lot - love, respect, trust, courage and encouragement. Now is the time to repay the debt of all this. As a public representative, and given the struggles I have been a part of, my responsibilities are now not just towards one player but towards thousands of dreams of those who want to build their future through sports in a safe environment. It has always been my dream to provide better facilities and a good sports environment to the next generation of players. Now that time has come. I will always be grateful for the respect and honour given to me by the entire society and the Haryana government for my performance in the Olympics," the former wrestler wrote in a post on X.

"This prize money given by the government is not just a reward--it is an opportunity, a means to realise the dream that I have been seeing for years. Therefore, this prize money will be used to establish an international-level