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Ritika Phogat, cousin of Geeta and Babita Phogat, commits suicide after losing wrestling tournament final

Ritika Phogat - cousin sister of star India wrestlers Geeta and Babita Phogat - committed suicide after she reportedly lost the final match of a wrestling tournament.

Ritika Phogat, cousin of Geeta and Babita Phogat, commits suicide after losing wrestling tournament final

New Delhi, March 18: Ritika Phogat - cousin sister of star India wrestlers Geeta and Babita Phogat - committed suicide after she reportedly lost the final match of a wrestling tournament.

It is being claimed that Ritika, who was the maternal sister of the Phogat sisters, could not bear the embarrassment of defeat in the final match.

As per media reports, Ritika participated in the state-level sub-junior, junior women, and men wrestling competition at Lohagarh Stadium in Bharatpur, Rajasthan between March 12 and 14. In the final which was played on March 14, Ritika lost by a slender of just one point. Ritika went in shock after the defeat and took the extreme step of ending her life.

It is also being reported that Dronacharya Awardee and father of Phogat sisters, Mahavir Phogat, was also present in the tournament.

Phogat sisters (Geeta and Babita) became a household name after winning Gold and Silver medals respectively in the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in New Delhi. Geeta was the first female wrestler from India to have won a gold medal in the CWG and even went on representing the nation in the 2012 London Olympics.

Later, their younger sister Ritu Phogat is a professional MMA (mixed martial arts) fighter and participates in the ONE Championship. Their cousin sister Vinesh Phogat is one of the best freestyle wrestlers in the world and a medal hopeful at the Tokyo Olympics.

Inspired by the journey of the two sisters and the struggles of their father - who himself was a national level wrestler in his youth - Bollywood director Nitesh Tiwari directed a biopic titled 'Dangal' in which Bollywood's Mr Perfectionist Aamir Khan essayed the character of Mahavir Phogat while actors Fatima Sana Sheik and Sanya Malhotra played on-screen Geeta and Babita respectively. The film was released in December 2016 and went on to become the country's highest-grossing film of all times.

Story first published: Thursday, March 18, 2021, 2:11 [IST]
Other articles published on Mar 18, 2021