Olympics 2024: The Phogat phenom!

Researched by: Anannya Parekh, Aakriti Anand & Raghav Bikhchandani

Olympics 2024: The Phogat phenom!

Vinesh Phogat found vindication and glory on the mats in Paris. She first defeated Japan’s Yui Susaki—the four-time world and defending Olympic champion. A woman with an unbeaten 82-0 win record. You can watch the highlights here.

Why this was huge: Last year, Phogat was assaulted by Delhi Police during the wrestlers’ protest against the federation chief Brij Bhushan Singh—former BJP MP from Uttar Pradesh. He was accused of sexual harassment by several female wrestlers (See this Big Story). She was pilloried by the athletic establishment—labelled as a troublemaker. So this post-win photo after the Susaki contest…

… is all the more poignant because of this photo from the protests in Delhi.

Wait, there’s more! The very same day, Phogat went on to beat Cuba’s Yusneylis Guzman Lopez 5-0 in the semifinal. She goes through to the women’s 50 kg wrestling final—and has secured herself at least a silver medal. Phogat will take on Sarah Hildebrandt of the US—for a history-making gold. See the highlights of her semifinal win here and her coach, Woller Akos who wept with joy.

The phone call: The government put on a disgraceful show during the protests—doing its best to protect their man Brij Bhushan. So everyone is still waiting for the traditional—and in this case awkward—phone call from the PM congratulating Phogat. This is what fellow wrestler Bajrang Punia had to say on the matter:

Hockey heartbreaker: India fell agonisingly short in the semifinals—losing 3-2 to Germany. We will now battle Spain for bronze. The Hindu has the match report.

Heeeeeere’s Neeraj! The Tokyo 2020 gold medallist made a big splash in the qualifying round with an astonishing 89.34-metre throw—his best in two years and higher than his effort of 87.58 metres in 2020. Chopra will be the frontrunner in the men’s javelin final. Here’s a clip of his throw.

Swimming wonders: Sure, everyone’s talking about French wonder Léon Marchand—who bagged four gold medals and one bronze. But we’re just as impressed with the US synchronised swimming team—and their underwater upside-down moonwalk. They will play for a medal later today. Check it out below.

Sweden pole vaulter: Sweden’s Armand Duplantis looked effortlessly cool—as he stormed to win a record-breaking gold in the men’s pole vaulting final. See his 6.25-metre throw below.

Also: his fab tribute to the Paris Olympics’ coolest athlete—Turkish shooter Yusuf Dikec:

Kamala Harris waltzes with Walz

A few good (white) men: The Democratic presidential candidate had three suitors—vying to be running mate. All of them governors. All of them ‘safely’ white-–to counteract her dangerously exotic (and liberal) background :)

Mark Kelly—from the border state Arizona—would have neutralised the Republican ‘soft on immigration’ attack on Harris. Also: he’s a former fighter pilot and astronaut—but sadly not an inspiring speaker.
Josh Shapiro would give her a very good shot at sealing a crucial swing state— Pennsylvania. Shapiro is Obama-esque and soothingly ‘moderate’—but loathed by the Dem base for his harsh views on Palestine.
Tim Walz is brimming with ‘regular guy’ folksy charm—kinda like everyone’s favourite grandpa. He has personally inspired the ‘they’re just weird’ attack on Trumpers. But his state Minnesota is already in the bag.

And the winner is: Tim Walz! As Vox explains, Harris picked Walz because he will keep the Democrats united. He is respected by the centrists—and adored by the left for an impressively progressive record:

The Minnesota Miracle reforms, enacted in a single legislative session, read like a progressive wishlist. They include paid family leave, free school meals, marijuana legalization, a 100% clean energy mandate by 2040, and a slew of protections for organized labor.

But, but, but: He also refused to defund the police after the infamous killing of George Floyd in his state. So there’s something here for everyone. Besides, who can hate on a grandpa who doles out free meals to kids:

Btw, Walz is also famous for offering home repair tips—which is always useful in a Veep. Line of the day: “You think you just waltzed out of a coconut tree?”

Reading list: AP via The Hindu has an overview. Vox has the best analysis—on why this is a good pick. Washington Post (splainer gift link) has the behind-the-scenes report on why she picked Walz. The Intercept looks at his record on Israel.

Bangladesh upheaval: The latest update

ICYMI: Our Tuesday edition has an explainer on the fall of Bangladesh PM Sheikh Hasina.

One: Where, oh where will Sheikh Hasina go? The literally homeless leader was hoping to seek asylum in the UK—but it looks unlikely. The Labour government recently demanded a UN-led investigation into the brutal repression of the student protests. Oops! FYI: Indian officials insist this is just a “technical roadblock. But New Delhi is ready to host her “as long as it takes.” The Hindu looks at her options—and the many siblings, nieces and kids who could give her refuge.

Also this: External Affairs Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar wants everyone to know: “Throughout this period, we repeatedly counselled restraint and urged that the situation be defused through dialogue.” Just saying…

Two: The country is still in a state of chaos—with “revenge killings of Awami League leaders and police, attacks on minorities and the torching of hotels and clubs.” Everyone associated with the old regime has gone into hiding or is trying to get out. The estimated death toll is 1,000.

Three: The good news is that there are signs of consensus over who will lead the interim government. The most likely choice: Muhammad Yunus—a Nobel Peace Prize winner and founder of the Grameen Bank. Yunus has been an outspoken critic of Hasina—who recently accused him of embezzlement. Associated Press has more on his career.

Side note: Refuting reports that Hindu temples and homes are being attacked, Gobinda Pramanik—general secretary of Bangladesh National Hindu Mahajot—offered this rebuke (in Bengali):

If you are so worried about Hasina, please remove PM Modi and announce Sheikh Hasina as your PM. She will protect India and also the Seven Sisters. You are saying every day that Seven Sisters would not exist if Hasina is not there. Now this is a big opportunity for you. You make Sheikh Hasina India's PM.

Related read: Bangladeshi publication Prothom Alo reports on Hasina’s final hours as PM.

Hamas has a new boss

Hamas has a new political leader—Yahya Sinwar, who is its top official in Gaza. He replaces Ismail Haniyeh who was assassinated by the Israelis in late July. Tel Aviv took out Haniyeh claiming he was one of the masterminds behind the October 7 attack. But, but, but: So is Sinwar. But this may be a frying pan-to-fire situation.

What Palestinian analysts say: “[I]t really sends a signal, as far as negotiations of a ceasefire is concerned, that Gaza calls the shots.” Sinwar is far closer to Hamas’ military wing than Haniyeh—and sends a strong signal: “This is more about the overall vision for what Hamas wants, which is focusing more on liberation and less on being a governing power.” But his ascension is also mostly symbolic since he is in hiding in Gaza. (New York Times, paywall, Al Jazeera)

Sticking with Palestine: A new report from a Jerusalem-based human rights group has revealed chilling accounts of 55 former Palestinian prisoners across 16 Israeli prisons run by the Israel Defence Forces (IDF):

Former detainees described abuse ranging from severe beatings and sexual violence to starvation rations, refusal of medical care, and deprivation of basic needs including water, daylight, electricity and sanitation, including soap and sanitary pads for women.

Why this matters: This report comes days after Israel detained nine soldiers who were accused of sexually abusing a Palestinian prisoner at a military facility. Data to note: As of early July, Israeli jails have held 9,623 Palestinians—almost double the figures prior to Hamas’ October 7 attacks. (The Guardian)

Meanwhile at the UN: Nine employees of United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA)—which provides relief for Palestinian refugees—have been sacked for their involvement with the October 7 attacks. (Al Jazeera)

Google loses a big antitrust case

The context: In a significant move in 2020, the US government filed an antitrust lawsuit against Google, claiming that its practices stifle competition and hurt the consumer. The case specifically flagged its monopoly over search. This Big Story has the details.

What happened now: A district judge ruled that Google’s search engine does indeed violate antitrust laws. The ruling said its exclusive deals helped squelch smaller rivals like Bing or DuckDuckGo, "by ensuring that all of Android and Apple and mobile users are offered Google, either as the default general search engine or the only general search engine.” FYI: Google spent up to $26 billion in 2021 just to seal these deals. The company plans to appeal.

Why this matters: If upheld, this ruling could reshape the rules for the tech industry—especially Meta, Microsoft, Apple, and Amazon—who also face antitrust investigations. FYI: The latest in the crosshairs is Nvidia—which has a 90% monopoly over the AI chip industry. New York Times explains why this judgement will be as influential as the landmark ruling against Microsoft in 2000. (Ars Technica)

Elon Musk is suing OpenAI

Former co-founder Elon Musk is suing OpenAI for cheating him into funding a supposedly non-profit organisation—and then turning it into a for-profit startup. The language is astonishingly melodramatic—claiming Musk was met with “perfidy and deceit of Shakespearean proportions.” FYI: Another OpenAI co-founder—John Schulman—just left the company to join its rival Anthropic. (Quartz)

Sticking with OpenAI: The company has developed a tool that can figure out if a text was written by its bot ChatGPT—and is 99.9% accurate. But it’s been reluctant to release the tool—since it would kill the bot’s greatest appeal: faking student essays:

In trying to decide what to do, OpenAI employees have wavered between the startup’s stated commitment to transparency and their desire to attract and retain users. One survey the company conducted of loyal ChatGPT users found nearly a third would be turned off by the anticheating technology.

Ah, the ethical dilemmas of being a tech company! (Wall Street Journal, paywall, Morning Brew)

Deep thought hurts your brain

Feel free to ignore demands to ‘think deeply’ about anything. A new study shows mental effort often leads to stress and irritation. According to one of the co-authors:

Managers often encourage employees, and teachers often encourage students to exert mental effort. On the surface, this seems to work well: Employees and students do often opt for mentally challenging activities. From this, you may be tempted to conclude that employees and students tend to enjoy thinking hard. Our results suggest that this conclusion would be false: In general, people really dislike mental effort.

What’s interesting: There’s a cultural difference—Asians were less affected than North Americans or Europeans. (Popular Science)

what caught our eye

business & tech

Google Pay, PhonePe, and Amazon Pay—as well as fintech firms Cred and Mobikwik—are all looking to join the Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) digital currency project.
Quick commerce startup Zepto is moving its headquarters out of Mumbai in order to consolidate all operations in Bangalore, where it already has an office.
Researchers at Citigroup have found that even if India’s real GDP continues to grow at 7%, it would not generate the 12 million-odd jobs needed. This drew a rebuttal from the Ministry of Labour and Employment.
Amazon’s India chief—Manish Tiwary—is leaving the company to pursue another opportunity, signalling a shift in Amazon’s focus towards its cloud business in India.
The government is rolling back some significant aspects of the latest Budget—involving indexation benefits on long-term capital gains (LTCG).

sports & entertainment

Indie rapper Hanumankind’s new track ‘Big Dawgs’ (see our headlines edition from August 1) has broken into the Billboard Hot 100 chart, sitting at 57th place.
Starring Fawad Khan and Sanam Saeed, the popular new series ‘Barzakh’ will be removed from YouTube in Pakistan amid controversy over its LGBTQ content.
The smashing success of ‘Deadpool & Wolverine’ reflects how mainstream the F-word has become in pop culture, according to Reuters.
At 78 years old, film director David Lynch has revealed that, due to his past smoking habit, he suffers from emphysema—a chronic lung disease—which restricts his mobility. But, he has not yet retired from directing.
A controversial new surveillance system—driven by AI algorithms—is watching over the Paris Olympics.

as for the rest

The search for missing people from the Wayanad landslide continues—the death toll currently stands at 224. Meanwhile, the Central government has been trying to pin the blame for the landslides on the Kerala government by courting scientists and other experts to influence media narratives.
Both veg and non veg thalis have become more expensive by 11% and 6% respectively, according to data by analytics firm CRISIL.
The death toll of Kallakurichi district’s hooch tragedy has risen to 68—nearly two months since daily wage labourers and loaders in Karunapuram drank methanol-infused hooch.
Not only does brushing and flossing your teeth freshen your breath but it also may extend your overall lifespan, a new study has revealed.
This US funeral home has been ordered to pay $950 million to victims’ families as they were giving fake ashes—190 decaying bodies were found in the premises.
A new study shows that the “orgasm gap” for straight women—compared to men—still exists and doesn’t reduce with age or experience.

Three things to see

One: Determined not to be left behind by Kamala, Donald Trump unveiled his dance moves in a livestream with right-wing YouTuber Adin Ross—who also gifted him a Tesla cybertruck. It is every bit as awful as you’d expect. (Hollywood Reporter)

Two: CEO Gaurav Munjal informed Unacademy employees that they won’t get any raises this year during a company town hall—wearing a $400 Burberry t-shirt. (NDTV)

Three: Two photographs—taken 15 years apart—reveal the alarming rate at which ice in the Swiss Alps is melting. As the guy who took the photos wrote, “Not gonna lie, it made me cry.” (The Guardian)