Historic Achievements for India at Commonwealth Games: Sharmila Dhankar Leads the Charge

India Celebrates Historic Wins at Commonwealth Games

Sharmila Dhankar made history by becoming the first Indian to secure a gold medal in para-athletics at the Commonwealth Games, while high jumper Sarvesh Kushare and weightlifters Valluri Ajaya Babu and Gyaneshwari Yadav each earned silver medals, marking a successful day for India in the multi-sport event.

Sharmila's remarkable performance in the women's shot put F57 event, where she achieved a season-best throw of 9.81m, made her the first Indian to win gold in para-athletics at the Games late Monday night.

This victory ended a two-decade wait for a para-athletics medal for India, with the last one being secured by Ranjith Kumar Jayaseelan in the men's seated Discus Throw at the 2006 Games.

The F57 classification is designated for athletes with lower limb impairments, limb deficiencies, or reduced muscle power.

Shortly after, national record holder Kushare made history by winning silver in the men's high jump, becoming the first Indian to achieve this feat at the Commonwealth Games.

The 31-year-old cleared a height of 2.25m but narrowly missed out on gold due to countback against Jamaica's Romaine Beckford, who also failed to clear 2.28m. England's Jack Kimani secured bronze with a jump of 2.20m.

Kushare's achievement surpassed the bronze medal won by Tejaswin Shankar in Birmingham four years ago, which was India's only medal in this event. Tejaswin, who competed on the same day, retired after failing to clear 2.05m in his first attempt as a precaution ahead of the decathlon later this week. Adarsh Ram finished fifth with a jump of 2.15m.

Weightlifting Shines for India

Weightlifting proved to be a significant source of medals for India, with 21-year-old Valluri Ajaya Babu earning silver in the men's 79kg category after a thrilling contest against Malaysia's Erry Hidayat Muhammad.

The Andhra Pradesh lifter achieved a total of 330kg (149kg in snatch and 181kg in clean and jerk), just missing gold by a kilogram as Hidayat set a Games record with a total of 331kg (147kg and 184kg). The two athletes repeatedly broke Games records during an exciting clean and jerk competition, with the Malaysian clinching victory with his final lift.

Ajaya Babu's silver medal brought India's weightlifting tally to six medals at the Games.

Earlier on Monday, Gyaneshwari Yadav also won silver in the women's 53kg event, while Bindyarani Devi added a bronze in the 58kg category.

Gyaneshwari achieved personal best lifts totaling 199kg (88kg and 111kg), finishing behind Nigeria's Onome Omolola Didih, who set new Commonwealth and Games records with a total of 206kg.

Bindyarani fought valiantly but settled for bronze with a total of 199kg (87kg and 112kg), while Nigeria's Rafiatu Folashade Lawal took gold with a record-breaking performance.

Boxers Progress in Medal Contention

Indian boxers continued to show promise as Sachin Siwach, Ankush, and Sakshi Chaudhary advanced to the quarterfinals in their respective categories.

Former world youth champion Sachin triumphed over England's William Hewitt with a score of 4-1 in the men's 60kg division and will face Botswana's Treasure Moremi next.

Ankush dominated Jan Zalaan of Antigua and Barbuda with a 5-0 victory in the men's 80kg category, setting up a quarterfinal match against Seychelles' Jade Micock. Meanwhile, Sakshi, a former world youth and junior champion, secured a unanimous 5-0 win over Botswana's Lethabo Modukanele in the women's 51kg event and will compete against Northern Ireland's Caitlin Fryers next.

However, Sumit was eliminated after a closely contested men’s 70kg round of 16 match, losing 1-4 on a split decision to Northern Ireland's Jon McConnell.

Disappointment for Gurindervir Singh

In athletics, national record holder Gurindervir Singh faced disappointment as he exited the men's 100m heats.

The 25-year-old, who entered the Games with a personal best of 10.09 seconds and aspirations of breaking the 10-second barrier, clocked 10.39 seconds, finishing 28th overall and failing to reach the semifinals.

Additionally, national record holder Tejas Shirse became the first Indian to qualify for the men's 110m hurdles final at the Games but finished last in the medal race due to an injury.

The 24-year-old Shirse placed third in Heat 1 with a time of 13.76 seconds, qualifying for the final in sixth place overall.

However, in the final, an injured Shirse managed only 15.39 seconds, finishing eighth and last. His national record remains at 13.27 seconds.

"During warm-up, I sustained a Navicular stress fracture in my left leg. I didn't want to withdraw, so I asked my physio to tape it," Shirse explained after the race. "Being the first Indian to qualify for the 110m hurdles final in the CWG, I didn't want to let the nation down by pulling out," he added.

Challenges in Swimming Events

The swimming events brought little success, as two-time Olympian Sajan Prakash and Aryan Nehra both finished in eighth place in their respective finals.

Prakash recorded a time of 1:58.05 in the men's 200m butterfly final, while Nehra clocked 8:07.26 in the men's 800m freestyle final.

In para swimming, Swatik Patil finished fifth in the men's 100m breaststroke SB9 event with a time of 1:15.82.