Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships 2023: Indian contingent starts strongly with five medals

Noida (Uttar Pradesh) [India], July 13 : Indian weightlifting contingent started the senior Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships 2023 with a bang, clinching a total of five medals, including three golds and two silvers on the first day of the event on Wednesday. 

The event is being hosted at Gautam Buddha University in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh, as per Olympics.com. 

Komal Kohar and Gyaneshwari Yadav walked away with gold medals in women's 45 kg and 49 kg categories while Mukund Aher, competing in men's 55 kg also finished at the top. Former Asian champion Jhilli Dalabehera (women’s 49kg) and Shrabani Das (women’s 55kg) won silver medals.

Kohar gave India their first medal of the day with her lift of 154kg (68kg snatch +86kg clean and jerk). She was followed by Sri Lanka's Srimali Samarakoon Divisekara, who got silver for her lift of 146kg (61kg+85kg). The bronze medal was won by Malta's Kim Camilleri Lagana, who lifted a total of 134kg (58kg+76kg). Only three weightlifters played in women's 45 kg category.

Gyaneshwari, who won a silver at Junior World Weightlifting Championships last year got gold in women's 49 kg with a total lift of 176kg (78kg+98kg).

The 2019 Commonwealth champion Jhilli had to settle for silver in her category with a total lift of 169kg (75kg + 94kg).

Later, Mukund won the men's 55 kg event with a total lift of 239 kg, 106 kg in snatch and 139 kg in clean and jerk. Md Ashikur Rahman Taj of Bangladesh lifted 92kg in snatch and 105kg in clean and jerk for a total of 207kg and had to settle for silver. Only three players participated in this category too. 

Shrabani had to stay content with a silver in women's 55 kg. She lifted a total of 181 kg (81kg+100kg)  and fell eight short of winning total of Jenly Tegu Wini of the Solomon Islands, who had a total life of 189 kg (83kg+106kg). A total of nine weightlifters competed in this category and Chloe Parkins of Australia walked away with a bronze with a lift of 152kg (66kg+86kg).

Over 250 weightlifters from 20 countries are competing at the event across junior, youth and senior categories. The championships will conclude on July 16.