India Opens Medal Tally At Commonwealth Games 2026 With Jhandu Kumar Clinching Bronze In Para Powerlifting

Commonwealth Games 2026: India clinched their maiden medal at the ongoing Commonwealth Games 2026 in Glasgow, with Jhandu Kumar securing bronze in the men’s heavyweight para powerlifting.

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Jhandu Kumar Opens India's Medal Tally At CWG 2026

The Indian para athlete finished third with a best successful lift of 190kg, earning 130.9 points. He opened with 181kg in his first attempt, then pushed himself to 190kg in the second, which briefly put him on top of the table. In his final attempt, Jhandu went for a record-breaking 196kg but failed to complete the lift, settling for bronze.

Nigeria’s Riluwan Idris claimed gold, while England’s Matthew Harding took silver. Jhandu’s medal also marked India’s first-ever podium finish in para powerlifting at the Commonwealth Games.

Earlier, India’s lightweight para powerlifters missed out on medals. Ashok finished fourth in the men’s final with a personal-best 200kg lift, scoring 143.8 points. Paramjeet Kumar placed seventh with 176kg and 135.6 points.

In the women’s lightweight category, Jaspreet Kaur ranked sixth after lifting 100kg for 96.4 points, while Suman Devi finished seventh with 100kg and 88.4 points. Kasthuri Rajamani, meanwhile, failed to record a valid lift in the women’s heavyweight final after three unsuccessful attempts.

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CWG 2026 Undergoes Massive Change

The 23rd edition of the Games has been stripped down, with several marquee sports missing from the roster. CWG 2026 features just 10 disciplines, a sharp cut from the 19 staged at Birmingham 2022, meaning India’s overall medal haul is likely to take a hit.

The CWG 2026 includes 10 sports: athletics, swimming, track cycling, weightlifting, 3x3 basketball, lawn bowls, netball, artistic gymnastics, judo, and boxing. Alongside these, six para events will be staged in athletics, basketball, bowls, cycling, swimming, and powerlifting.

Victoria, Australia, had initially been set to host but pulled out citing spiraling expenses. Glasgow, host city in 2014, stepped in at short notice, but could only commit to staging 10 sports across four venues.

(With ANI Inputs)