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Union Sports Minister Mansukh Mandaviya congratulated Indian weightlifter Harjinder Kaur after she clinched the silver medal in the women's 69kg category at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, praising her podium finish in Glasgow.
In a post on X, Mandaviya said, "Power, passion, and a podium finish! Congratulations to Harjinder Kaur on winning the Silver Medal in the Women's 69kg Weightlifting event at the Commonwealth Games 2026." Harjinder produced one of the finest performances of her career, finishing with a personal-best total of 227kg, comprising 101kg in the snatch and 126kg in the clean and jerk. Canada's Charlotte Simoneau claimed the gold medal with a total lift of 235kg (108kg in snatch and 127kg in the clean and jerk). The Punjab weightlifter made an impressive start to the competition by rewriting the Commonwealth Games record twice in the snatch. After successfully lifting 96kg, she raised the Games mark with a 99kg effort before improving it again with a superb 101kg lift in her final attempt. Her record-breaking snatch performance kept her firmly in contention for gold heading into the clean and jerk. Harjinder opened the second phase with a comfortable lift of 120kg to briefly move into the top spot before successfully clearing 126kg to finish with a career-best total and secure the silver medal. Although Simoneau reclaimed the lead with a decisive final lift to seal the title, Harjinder's display highlighted India's continued dominance in weightlifting at the Glasgow Games. The silver medal marked Harjinder's second successive Commonwealth Games podium finish after winning bronze at the Birmingham 2022 Games, while also improving the colour of her previous medal. Born in Nabha, Punjab, the 28-year-old has emerged as one of India's leading weightlifters, and her latest achievement further boosted India's medal tally in one of its strongest disciplines at the Games. India has enjoyed a successful campaign in Glasgow, winning 12 medals so far -- two gold, seven silver and three bronze. India's medallists are Mirabai Chanu (gold, weightlifting), Sharmila Dhankar (gold, women's shot put F57), Rishikanta Singh (silver, weightlifting), Muthupandi Raja (silver, weightlifting), Gyaneshwari Yadav (silver, weightlifting), Sarvesh Kushare (silver, men's high jump), Gulveer Singh (silver, men's 10,000m), Harjinder Kaur (silver, weightlifting), Valluri Ajaya Babu (silver, weightlifting), Bindyarani Devi (bronze, weightlifting), Shilpa K. Shyla (bronze, women's shot put F57) and Jhandu Kumar (bronze, para powerlifting). (ANI)
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