Weightlifter Thakur strikes silver in men’s 96kg

BIRMINGHAM: Indian heavyweight lifter Vikas Thakur added yet another Commonwealth Games medal to his kitty, winning a silver in the men’s 96kg here on Tuesday.

The seasoned Thakur lifted a total of 346kg (155kg+191kg) to finish second and claim his third CWG medal across three editions.

It was Thakur’s second silver, having finished second in the 2014 Glasgow edition as well. In Gold Coast, he had returned with a bronze.

Samoa’s Don Opeloge 381kg (171kg+210kg) bettered his 2018 silver by clinching gold with a record-breaking performance.

Thakur, a five-time Commonwealth Championships medallist, had three clean lifts of 149kg, 153kg and 155kg to be in joint third-position after the snatch round.

In the clean and jerk section, Thakur started off with a 187kg lift, which he executed perfectly.

His second attempt was of 191 kg, which took some effort but the Punjab lifter was able to pull it off and celebrated it with a ‘thigh-five’ made popular by Indian cricketer Shikhar Dhawan.

With a silver assured, Thakur went for 198kg, a kilogram more than his personal best, in his third attempt but was unsuccessful.

Harjinder wins bronze

India’s Harjinder Kaur claimed the bronze medal in the women’s 71kg weightlifting competition after a dramatic climax.

Luck was on Harjinder’s side as she was assured of a podium finish after Nigeria’s gold medal favourite Joy Eze was knocked out following three failed attempts in the clean and jerk category.

England’s Sarah Davies won the gold medal with a total of 229 kgs, while Canada’s Alexis Ashworth bagged the silver with 214.

Harjinder totalled 212 (93 in snatch and 119 in clean and jerk). On her way to the gold medal, Davies also broke the Commonwealth and Commonwealth Games record.

To start with, Harjinder failed to lift 90kg snatch in her first attempt. Under pressure, the Indian bounced back and lifted 90kg snatch on her second attempt, a personal best.

Harjinder, then, lifted 93kg snatch in her third attempt to stay in contention for a podium finish.

Heading into the clean and jerk round, Harjinder was in for a close fight with Australia’s Kiana Elliot for bronze.

A silver medallist at last year’s Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships, the Indian started the clean and jerk round with 113kg, went for 116 kg in the next attempt, and lifted 119kg on her third attempt.