Vinesh Phogat arrived at Gonda, Uttar Pradesh, on Monday (May 11, 2026) and replied to the Wrestling Federation of India’s (WFI) show-cause notice, claiming that she was eligible to return from retirement even though the national federation maintained that she cannot be allowed to compete in the ongoing National Open Ranking tournament.

The WFI said she cannot compete until disciplinary proceedings against her are complete.

The national federation had earlier declared Vinesh ineligible to participate in domestic events till June 26, 2026, citing the mandatory six-month notice period linked to athletes returning from retirement under anti-doping rules.

Immediately after landing in Ayodhya, Vinesh replied to the WFI’s show-cause notice, claiming that Rule 5.6.1 of the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Code concerning retired athletes does not apply to her as she had already informed United World Wrestling (UWW) in June about her decision to resume competition after retirement.

In her response, Vinesh argued that she had formally intimated UWW about her comeback well in advance and, therefore, fulfilled the procedural requirements needed to return to competition.

However, WFI sources said the federation was not satisfied with her reply and felt that the wrestler had addressed only the eligibility aspect while failing to respond comprehensively to the broader disciplinary charges levelled against her in the detailed notice issued earlier.

“The reply is not enough. She has not answered the full show-cause notice. Until a disciplinary hearing is conducted and the matter is decided, she cannot be permitted to compete,” a WFI source told PTI.

The controversy erupted after WFI issued a strongly worded show-cause notice to the celebrated wrestler, accusing her of indiscipline, breach of federation rules and anti-doping related procedural violations.

Before that, Vinesh had claimed that WFI was trying to block her entry.

The WFI also maintained that a “wrong narrative” was being spread that the selection criteria for the National Open Ranking Tournament had been altered specifically to prevent Vinesh from competing.

Vinesh had announced her retirement from the sport after her disqualification from the women’s 50kg gold medal bout at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

While her husband said that Vinesh never announced her retirement officially, and merely posted it on social media, WFI has maintained that a communication from UWW in December 2024 acknowledged that she had intimated the International Testing Agency (ITA) about her retirement.

Vinesh, on the other hand, has argued that she had subsequently informed the world body about her intention to return and was therefore eligible to enter the tournament in Gonda.

The weigh-in for the women’s wrestlers is scheduled between 5 p.m. and 7 p.m. on Monday (May 11, 2026) and the competition is scheduled for Tuesday (May 12, 2026).

The medal winners at the event are likely to get a chance to compete at the World Championship trials later this year but they won’t be allowed to compete in Asian Games trials as per the WFI policy.

The Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) on Saturday (May 9, 2026) show-caused double World championships medallist Vinesh Phogat on different grounds, including her failure to stick to the weight restriction at the Paris Olympics, anti-doping issues (multiple whereabouts failures) and participating in two weight categories during the trials for an Olympic qualifier.

Besides, the WFI shot down Vinesh’s attempt to come back to competitive wrestling — at the Senior Open Ranking tournament starting on the Nandininagar Mahavidyalaya campus on Sunday (May 10) — following her post-Paris “sabbatical.” It said Vinesh informed the world body, United World Wrestling (UWW), about her return less than six months ago, the minimum stipulation for a retired athlete to make a comeback.

It’s learnt that there is a written record of Vinesh’s retirement and her decision to return to competition.

In the 15-page show-cause, the WFI highlighted the issue of Vinesh failing to meet the weight stipulation on the second day after reaching the 50kg final at the Paris Olympics. It said Vinesh was “duty-bound” under UWW rules to stick to the limit and her disqualification resulted in a loss of medal, negative publicity and reputational damage to the WFI.

The WFI said Vinesh committed whereabouts (where an athlete on the registered testing pool gives time slots and makes herself available to give samples for dope testing) failures, including twice in 2024 and the one on December 18, 2025, soon after she informed authorities concerned about her resumption of training with an eye on Los Angeles 2028.

The federation said it must satisfy itself that Vinesh had not committed any anti-doping rule violation that would render her ineligible to participate in any event, including the Open Ranking event “which is in any case prior to your six months completion from your date of resumption.”

The WFI also accused Vinesh of violating the UWW rule by competing in two weights, 50kg and 53kg trials (which was conducted by an ad-hoc committee as the WFI was not recognised by the Government then), in March 2024.

The federation gave Vinesh 14 days to give an explanation.

Meanwhile, the Open Ranking event here will provide a chance to several talented wrestlers to enter the National camp.