CWG: Lifter Pardeep takes silver; Purnima, Lalchhanhimi falter (Weightlifting Roundup)

Indian weightlifter Pardeep Singh took the silver in the men's 105 kilogram category at the 21st Commonwealth Games (CWG) here on Monday, lifting 152kg in snatch and 200kg in clean and jerk for a total of 352kg.

Sanele Mao of Samoa won the gold with a total of 360kg. He lifted 154kg in snatch and 206kg in clean and jerk.

England's Owen Boxall got the bronze with a total of 351kg which included 152kg in snatch and 199kg in clean and jerk.

This was the seventh medal for India in weightlifting at this year's CWG.

Mirabai Chanu kicked off India's medal hunt by winning the women's 48kg title on the opening day. Sanjita Chanu, Sathish Sivalingam, Venkat Rahul Ragala and Punam Yadav followed suit by emerging champions in their respective events.

Vikas Thakur meanwhile, got bronze in the men's 94kg category on Sunday.

Pardeep was off to a poor start as he failed to clear 148kg in his opening attempt in the snatch.

But he recovered well by clearing that weight in his second attempt before another successful lift of 152kg handed him the second spot.

Mao on the other hand, took the lead straight away by lifting 150kg in his opening attempt. He then needed two attempts to clear 154kg which gave him a lead of two kilograms after the end of the snatch phase.

Boxall and Ghana's Richmond Osarfo also cleared 152kg in the snatch, but Pardeep took the second spot due to a lesser bodyweight.

The clean and jerk saw a bit of a drama as both Mao and Pardeep started off with successful lifts of 200kg each.

The Samoan's successful bid of 206kg in his second attempt prompted Pardeep to go for 209kg which proved unsuccessful.

Mao decided to go for 211kg in his third and last attempt, prompting Pardeep to list the same weight in a bid to stay in contention for the gold.

The Samoan failed his third attempt, which meant the Indian would have won the gold had he managed a successful final attempt.

Even a lift of 209kg would have handed the gold to the Indian. But the rules prevented him from reducing the weight at that stage.

Forced to attempt 211kg, Pardeep failed to complete the lift as an emotional Mao fell to his knees in tearful celebration.

It was a disappointing day for the Indian women weightlifters however, as Purnima Pandey and Lalchhanhimi fared poorly in their respective events.

Purnima Pandey finished sixth in a field of eight competitors in the women's +90kg category.

She struggled right form the start, posting a best effort of 94kg in the snatch, which was 19kg less than eventual gold medallist Feagaiga Stowers' chart topping attempt of 113kg.

Purnima managed a best of 118 kg in the clean jerk for a total of 212kg.

Stowers cleared 140kg to clinch the gold for Samoa with a total of 253kg -- a whopping 41kg more than Purnima's total.

Charisma Amoe-Tarrant of Nauru took silver with a total of 243kg while England's Emily Campbell bagged the bronze with 242kg.

Competing in the women's 90kg category, Lalchhanhimi fared even worse. She finished last amongst eight in her event with a total of 194kg.

She failed two of her attempts in the snatch to register 85kg. Her best effort in clean and jerk was 109kg.

Eileen Cikamatana of Fiji won gold in the event with a total of 233kg. Kaity Fassina (232kg) of Australia and Cameroon's Clementine Meukeugni Noumbissi (226kg) took silver and bronze, respectively.

--IANS

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