Asian Games 2026: CWG silver medalist Harjinder finishes 9th in 69 kg weightlifting
Commonwealth Games silver medalist Harjinder Kaur finishes 9th in the 69 kg weightlifting event at the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya.
Indian weightlifter and Commonwealth Games silver medalist Harjinder Kaur finished in ninth position in the women's 69 kg weightlifting event at the ongoing Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya on Sunday.
A Tough Day for Harjinder
Harjinder, who secured a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games earlier this year, was unable to replicate her previous success on the continental stage. She finished the competition with a combined lift of 204 kg, consisting of 94 kg in the snatch and 110 kg in the clean and jerk.
The snatch section proved challenging for the Indian athlete. Her best lift stood at 94 kg, as she failed her final two attempts at 97 kg. This performance fell seven kg short of her personal best of 101 kg, a mark she achieved during the Commonwealth Games.
After her first clean and jerk attempt of 110 kg, Harjinder briefly climbed to fourth place in the standings. However, as other competitors produced stronger lifts, she slipped back down to the bottom half of the table, ultimately concluding her campaign in ninth place.
Podium Results in Women's 69 kg
The gold medal was claimed by North Korea's Hyang Kuk Song, who dominated with a combined lift of 273 kg (121 kg snatch and 152 kg clean and jerk). The silver medal went to Wen-huei Chei of Chinese Taipei with 232 kg, while Bahrain's Ingrid Grueso took the bronze with 229 kg.
Mixed Fortunes for Team India
While the weightlifting event saw a setback, Indian pugilist Ankush Panghal secured a medal for the country. Competing in the men's 80 kg boxing category, Panghal defeated Tajikistan's Nekruz Salimov with a 5-0 unanimous decision in the quarterfinals to confirm his place on the podium.
Badminton and Fencing Departures
India's individual badminton campaign ended on Sunday as PV Sindhu and Unnati Hooda were eliminated in the women's singles quarterfinals. Despite a strong start, Sindhu lost to China's Chen Yu Fei in a four-game battle (21-11, 18-21, 10-21). Similarly, Unnati Hooda fell to Japan's Akane Yamaguchi in a closely fought contest.
In fencing, the Indian women's sabre team—comprising Bhavani Devi, Shreya Gupta, Jefarlin Jani Rexlin Simla, and S. Shruti Joshi—saw their Asian Games journey end after a 45-35 defeat to Uzbekistan in the quarterfinals.
Athletics and Track Success
There is bright news in athletics as Murali Sreeshankar and David Patturaj Solomon have both qualified for the men's long jump finals. Sreeshankar placed second in Group B with a 7.84 m jump, while Solomon placed third in Group A with 7.62 m.
Additionally, Vithya Ramraj and Anu Raghavan have both secured spots in the women's 400 m hurdles finals after finishing second in their respective heats. Vithya recorded a season-best of 55.73, while Anu achieved a personal best of 55.84.