Chhattisgarh weightlifter Vijay Kumar clinched gold medal in the men's 55kg category with a national record-equalling clean and jerk effort to have a share of the spotlight in the 38th National Games in Dehradun on Thursday. (More Sports News)
♏Another Chhattisgarh weightlifter Gyaneshwari Yadav won gold in the women's 49kg with a total lift of 191kg (85kg+106kg), while Maharashtra's Sarika Shingare (179kg total lift) and Komal Kohar (179kg) of Haryana bagged the silver and bronze respectively.
🍃After a 105kg snatch, Kumar lifted 143kg in the clean and jerk section for a total of 248kg which handed him the gold. He now shares the clean and jerk national record with Maharashtra's Sanket Sargar who made the mark in 2022.
✅Maharashtra took both the silver and bronze through Mukund Aher (total lift of 247kg) and Srinivas Goud (244kg).
🍒For Kumar, the triumph was the culmination of an unwavering journey filled with adversity and setbacks.
🅺Born into a family that couldn’t afford sports supplements or specialized training, Kumar's early years were a battle against both financial hardship and self-doubt. For years, his diet was as simple as "daal-chawal", but his ambition was far from modest.
ꦓ“My parents didn’t see a future in weightlifting,” said Kumar after his event, reflecting on his early struggles.
♋“They wanted me to quit, but I couldn’t. This was my passion, my only choice. Today’s gold is proof I was right to keep going.”
🍷Hamstring injuries had also threatened to derail his career more than once, and there were times when Kumar himself doubted whether he would ever lift at the highest level again.
ꦺ“The pain was constant, and I couldn’t see a way forward,” he admitted.
🅠“I never thought I would win a gold medal. But here I am, standing at the top.”
🐭He dedicated his success to the two people who had been his greatest supporters: his parents and his coach.
ꦯ“This medal is for them. They believed in me when no one else did.”
