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Indian Olympic Association (IOA) President PT Usha praised the Commonwealth Games 2026 opening ceremony and expressed confidence in the Indian contingent, urging athletes to remain focused on their respective events and give their best.
Usha said the Indian athletes were confident and backed them to perform well at the Games. "The Indian athletes are all confident, and I expect them to perform well. They should stay focused on their own events, believe in themselves, and give their best. If they perform to the best of their ability, the medals will come naturally," she said. "The Commonwealth Games opening ceremony was excellent. Even after the ceremony, the athletes remained seated in the front rows and were able to enjoy the entire program," Usha told reporters. India have already opened their medal account at the Games with a bronze in powerlifting. Usha praised the performance, saying the athlete narrowly missed out on gold but had made the country proud. "We have already started with a bronze medal in powerlifting. He narrowly missed winning the gold, but a medal is a medal, and he has made us proud," Usha said. She also lauded boxer Lovlina Borgohain's performance and expressed hope that Indian athletes would continue to deliver strong performances in their respective events. "Lovlina also performed well. I believe they will all continue to do well," she added. Meanwhile, India opened its medal account at the 2026 Commonwealth Games after Jhandu Kumar won bronze in the men's heavyweight para powerlifting final in Glasgow. Jhandu lifted 190kg for 130.9 points, while his attempt at 196kg, which could have broken the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games meet record, was unsuccessful. India's Ashok finished fourth in the men's lightweight category, while Paramjeet Kumar placed seventh. In the women's events, Jaspreet Kaur and Suman Devi finished sixth and seventh, respectively, while Kasthuri Rajamani failed to register a valid lift. (ANI)
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