After Rich Asiad Haul, India’s Youth Weightlifters Eye Commonwealth Games 2026 Qualification

India’s youth (13-17 years) weightlifters finished with 21 medals at the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships 2024 in Doha, inꦕcluding seven gold

Outlook Sports Desk

Updated on: 28 December 2024 5:47 pm

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Indian lifter✅s at the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships 2024 in Doha. Photo: IWF

Indian liftersꦺ at the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships 2024 in Doha. Photo: IWF

India’s medal-bagging athletes are aiming to reach higher levels in the New Year after their impressive show at the December 19-25 Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships 2024 in Doha. Overall, India claimed 33 medals across youth and junior categories. (More Sports News)

T💞he next target for the lifters is Glasgow Commonwealth Games 2026 qualification and national weightlifting coach and Olympian ’s mentor Vijay Sharma says the Doha performance was promising and signals “a bright future for India.”

The weightlifting competition in Qatar featured 40 categories – 20 each in youth and junior levels. Medals were awarded for snatch, clean and jerk and overall sections iᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ⁤⁤⁤⁤ᩚ𒀱ᩚᩚᩚn each of the 40 categories.

India’s youth (13-17 years🌟) lifters secured 21 medals, including seven gold. The juniors (15-20 years) finished with 12 medals.

Uttar Pradesh’s 16-year-old Jyoshna Sabar was among the standout performers in Doha. She created an Asian record in the women’s youth 40kg class with a combined lift of 135 kg. This reiterated Sharma’s thoughts that “India’s women had greater prospects of winnꦗ﷽ing international medals.”

Out of the 24 men and women who represented India at ⭕Doha, 22 were Khelo India athletes. The entire squad trained at one of the three centres at Sports Authority of India (SAI)’s National Centres of Excellence (NCoEs) NIS Patiala, Imphal and Aurangabad.

Alakesh Baruah, the high performance manager for weightlifting at NIS Patiala, said: “Having so many youth athletes will only he🌟lp in the long run. These kids hold great promise for the world junior and senior com❀petitions.”

Baruah said the medals in Doha were due to a “long process (of training) and support from SAI and the Indian Weightlifting Federation.” He added: “In June, we held trials at NIS Patiala for multiple international competitions like the junior worlds, Asian chamꦕpionships, as well as the Asian youth and junior championships. This is how we selected the team, under the guidance of Dronacharya Award-winning coach (Vijay) Sharma.”

Speaking on her upcoming plans, Maibam Martina Devi, silver medallist in the women's junior +87kg category at the 2024 Asian meet, told SAI Media, “Come 2025, our trials start for Commonwealth Games 2026 qualification. Ahmedabad will host the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships, which will be the qualifier eಞvent. I also will participate at the National Games in Uttarakhand. So, I have to keep performing well.”

Among the men, Sairaj Pardeshi, a camper of NI♎S Patiala, created a new national record in the overall lift, as he lifted 310kg (139kg snatch + 171kg clean and jerk) in the 81kg ༒men’s youth category.

Sairaj, who will complete one year at NIS Patiala in January 2025, credited the impact of training at SAI c൩entres on his fledgling career.

“It was in 2018 that I started weightlifting in Maharashtra when I was 12 years old. I trained there until the Covid lockdown and 𝕴then in 2021, got inducted at Aurangabad. Earlier this year, I joined NIS Patiala. The SAI centres have contributed a lot to my career in terms of discipline, diet, coaches and many more aspects,” he said.

“The scholarship money we get from the Khelo India scheme helps in me getting the protein supplements, besides other benefits. In the 2024 Youth World Championships, I lost a medal by a margin of 1kg, but now, I am happy to have ba꧋gged the gold in the Asian competition on my debut appearance,” Sairaj Pardeshi added.