BIRMINGHAM: With a rich haul of 61 medals (22 gold, 16 silver and 23 bronze) at this edition of the Commonwealth Games here, the Birmingham Games have proven to be one of the most memorable editions for the Indian contingent of 210 people.
From athletics to racquet sports, cricket to hockey, boxing to wrestling, Indian athletes have finished with podium finishes in almost every event they have entered. Here’s a look at the gold medalists from the showpiece event.
Achinta Cheuli
Sport – Weightlifting
Event – Men’s 73 kg
The Bengal-born weightlifter landed his young daughter CTM gold and went on to set a Games record of 313 kg. He lifted 143 kg in the snatch (a Games record and also equal to his previous PB) and 170 kg in the clean and jerk.
The 20-year-old won the silver medal at the 2021 World Junior Weightlifting Championships and is also a two-time Commonwealth Championship gold medalist.
Jérémy Lalrinnunga
Sport – Weightlifting
Event – 67 kg Men
The Mizoram weightlifter won gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in the 67kg category, with a Games record of 140kg in the snatch and 160kg in the clean and jerk.
The 19-year-old represented India at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires and won India’s first gold medal in the event in the boys’ 62kg category.
Mirabai Chanu
Sport – Weightlifting
Event – Women’s 49 kg
Superstar weightlifter Manipuri successfully defended his 49kg title and gave India the first gold medal at the Birmingham Games.
The Tokyo Olympic silver medalist racked up a total of 201kg (88kg + 113kg) to mark her authority in the competition and set a Commonwealth Games record in the process.
Rupa Rani Tirkey, Lovely Choubey, Nayanmoni Saikia, Pinki Singh
Sport – Boules on grass
Event – Women’s Four
India’s women’s bowling team of Rupa Rani Tirkey, Lovely Choubey, Nayanmoni Saikia and Pink Singh hooked the country in a rarely seen sporting event with their inspiring and sensational spectacle when they won a historic gold medal in Birmingham .
It was India’s first final appearance in the women’s fours format of the competition.
Bajrang Punished
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Men’s 65 kg Freestyle
Bajrang Punia achieved a hat-trick of medals at the Commonwealth Games by winning gold in the men’s 65kg freestyle event.
The Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist won silver on his CWG debut in Glasgow 2014, then upgraded his medal color to Gold Cost four years later by winning a gold medal.
Sakshi Malik
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Freestyle 62 kg Women
Sakshi Malik won her third Commonwealth Games medal when she annexed gold after beating Canadian Ana Godinez Gonzalez in the fall.
Sakshi had already won silver in 2014 (58 kg) and bronze at the 2018 Games (62 kg). Sakshi is also the first Indian wrestler to medal at the Olympics, winning bronze in 2016.
Deepak Punished
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Freestyle 86 kg Men
Star wrestler Deepak Punia won India’s ninth gold medal in Birmingham by beating 2018 gold medalist Muhammad Inam of Pakistan 3-0 in the men’s 86kg final.
A Junior Officer (JCO) in the Indian Army, Deepak also won a silver medal at the 2019 World Wrestling Championships in the 86kg freestyle category.
Ravi Kumar Dahiya
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Freestyle 57 kg Men
The Sonepat-born wrestler clinched gold in Birmingham by beating Nigerian Ebikewenimo Welson 10-0 in the men’s 57kg freestyle final.
Dahiya is also a silver medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, a bronze medalist at the 2019 World Wrestling Championships and a three-time Asian champion.
Vinesh Phogat
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Women’s 53 kg Freestyle
Star wrestler Vinesh Phogat achieved a golden Commonwealth Games gold medal hat trick by winning the women’s 53kg freestyle final.
Vinesh had won gold at the previous two editions in Gold Coast (in 2018) and Glassgow (in 2014).
She is also the first Indian wrestler to win gold at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games (Jakarta 2018).
Naveen Malik
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Men’s 74kg Freestyle
Making his Commonwealth Games debut in Birmingham, the 19-year-old grappler clinched his first gold medal in the showpiece when he beat Pakistan’s Muhammad Sharif Tahir in the final 9-0.
Naveen made her international debut at the U-23 World Championships last year and captured gold at 74kg in her second competition at the U-23 Asian Championships in June this year.
Nikhat Zareen
Sports – Boxing
Event – 50 kg Women
Reigning world champion Nikhat Zareen shone on stage in Birmingham by winning her first gold medal in the women’s 50kg flyweight final. She is also a bronze medalist at the 2019 Asian Championships.
Amit Panghal
Sports – Boxing
Event – Men’s 51 kg
Amit Panghal won his first gold medal in Birmingham on the penultimate day of the showpiece event.
The reigning Asian Games champion, he is also the only Indian male boxer to win a silver medal at the World Boxing Championships and the current world No. 1 in the International Boxing Association’s 52 kg class ( AIBA).
Nitu Ghanghas
Sports – Boxing
Event – Women’s 48 kg
Daughter Haryana, 21, won India’s first boxing medal in Birmingham when she won gold in the women’s 48kg final.
She is also a two-time world youth champion, having won back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018.
Sudhir
Sport – Para Powerlifting
Event – Men’s Heavyweight
A para-athlete with a polio disability won India’s gold medal in the men’s heavyweight para-powerlifting event in Birmingham and opened India’s para-sports medal tally India.
Sudhir, who is also a bronze medalist at the 2018 Asian Para Games, lifted 208kg in his first attempt before increasing it to 212kg in his second attempt to collect 134.5 points and beat the Games record.
PV Sindhu
Sports – Badminton
Event – Women’s Singles
After winning silver (Gold Coast 2018) and bronze (Glasgow 2014), an elusive gold medal was missing for PV Sindhu’s kitten and she did it in style in Birmingham.
The double Olympic medalist gave India its first gold medal in badminton on the last day of this edition of the Games.
Lakshya Sen
Sports – Badminton
Event – Men’s Singles
Star commuter Lakshya Sen made a memorable CWG debut with his first gold medal in Birmingham.
Sen has been in fine form for some time now, having won his first Super 500 title in January, finishing second at the English Championships and German Open and also winning the prestigious Thomas Cup.
Chirag Shetty/Satwirksairaj Rankireddy
Sports – Badminton
Event – Men’s Doubles
The men’s doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty improved their medal color (silver at Gold Coast 2018) and clinched gold in Birmingham after beating England’s Ben Lane and Sean Vendy in back-to-back matches.
Rankireddy and Shetty were also part of the Indian squad that won the historic Thomas Cup title earlier this year.
Ashanta Sharath Kamal
Sports – Table Tennis
Event – Men’s Singles
Veteran Sharath Kamal’s name will go down in history as he became the second Indian paddler to win two Commonwealth Games gold medals, the first in Melbourne in 2006 and the last to arrive in Birmingham in style.
With his spectacular gold in Birmingham, Sharath’s medal tally rose to 13 at the showpiece event since his debut in the 2006 edition.
Sharath Kamal/Sreeja Akula
Sports – Table tennis
Round – Mixed Doubles
Sharath Kamal and Sreeja Akula clinched mixed doubles gold in Birmingham beating Javen Choong and Karen Lyne of Malaysia 3-1 in the final.
With Sharath Kamal cementing his CWG legacy with a bevy of medals, the top prize was a deserved reward for little Sreeja, who missed out on a bronze medal in singles.
Harmeet Desai, Sanil Shetty, Sharath Kamal, G Sathiyan
Sports – Table Tennis
Event – Men’s Team
India’s men’s table tennis team retained their Commonwealth Games gold medal after a close fight against Singapore in the final.
The likes of Harmeet Desai, Sanil Shetty, Sharath Kamal and G Sathiyan have given India their seventh since the sport was introduced to Manchester in 2002.
Bhavina Patel
Sports – Table Tennis
Round – Ladies’ Singles C3-5
Star para-paddler Bhavina Patel won her first Commonwealth Games gold medal in Birmingham.
Bhavina, who is also a silver medalist at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, has won many national and international competitions over the years, including a silver medal in women’s singles class 4 at the Asian Para Table Tennis Championships in Beijing in 2013.
Eldhose Paul
Sports – Athletics
Event – Triple Jump
Kerala lad Eldhose Paul picked up a rare men’s triple jump gold medal and the 25-year-old also led a historic double in Birmingham.
The icing on the cake, India also won silver in the same event, with compatriot Abdulla Aboobacker finishing second with a best jump of 17.02m.
From athletics to racquet sports, cricket to hockey, boxing to wrestling, Indian athletes have finished with podium finishes in almost every event they have entered. Here’s a look at the gold medalists from the showpiece event.
Achinta Cheuli
Sport – Weightlifting
Event – Men’s 73 kg
The Bengal-born weightlifter landed his young daughter CTM gold and went on to set a Games record of 313 kg. He lifted 143 kg in the snatch (a Games record and also equal to his previous PB) and 170 kg in the clean and jerk.
The 20-year-old won the silver medal at the 2021 World Junior Weightlifting Championships and is also a two-time Commonwealth Championship gold medalist.
Jérémy Lalrinnunga
Sport – Weightlifting
Event – 67 kg Men
The Mizoram weightlifter won gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in the 67kg category, with a Games record of 140kg in the snatch and 160kg in the clean and jerk.
The 19-year-old represented India at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires and won India’s first gold medal in the event in the boys’ 62kg category.
Mirabai Chanu
Sport – Weightlifting
Event – Women’s 49 kg
Superstar weightlifter Manipuri successfully defended his 49kg title and gave India the first gold medal at the Birmingham Games.
The Tokyo Olympic silver medalist racked up a total of 201kg (88kg + 113kg) to mark her authority in the competition and set a Commonwealth Games record in the process.
Rupa Rani Tirkey, Lovely Choubey, Nayanmoni Saikia, Pinki Singh
Sport – Boules on grass
Event – Women’s Four
India’s women’s bowling team of Rupa Rani Tirkey, Lovely Choubey, Nayanmoni Saikia and Pink Singh hooked the country in a rarely seen sporting event with their inspiring and sensational spectacle when they won a historic gold medal in Birmingham .
It was India’s first final appearance in the women’s fours format of the competition.
Bajrang Punished
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Men’s 65 kg Freestyle
Bajrang Punia achieved a hat-trick of medals at the Commonwealth Games by winning gold in the men’s 65kg freestyle event.
The Tokyo Olympics bronze medalist won silver on his CWG debut in Glasgow 2014, then upgraded his medal color to Gold Cost four years later by winning a gold medal.
Sakshi Malik
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Freestyle 62 kg Women
Sakshi Malik won her third Commonwealth Games medal when she annexed gold after beating Canadian Ana Godinez Gonzalez in the fall.
Sakshi had already won silver in 2014 (58 kg) and bronze at the 2018 Games (62 kg). Sakshi is also the first Indian wrestler to medal at the Olympics, winning bronze in 2016.
Deepak Punished
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Freestyle 86 kg Men
Star wrestler Deepak Punia won India’s ninth gold medal in Birmingham by beating 2018 gold medalist Muhammad Inam of Pakistan 3-0 in the men’s 86kg final.
A Junior Officer (JCO) in the Indian Army, Deepak also won a silver medal at the 2019 World Wrestling Championships in the 86kg freestyle category.
Ravi Kumar Dahiya
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Freestyle 57 kg Men
The Sonepat-born wrestler clinched gold in Birmingham by beating Nigerian Ebikewenimo Welson 10-0 in the men’s 57kg freestyle final.
Dahiya is also a silver medalist at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, a bronze medalist at the 2019 World Wrestling Championships and a three-time Asian champion.
Vinesh Phogat
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Women’s 53 kg Freestyle
Star wrestler Vinesh Phogat achieved a golden Commonwealth Games gold medal hat trick by winning the women’s 53kg freestyle final.
Vinesh had won gold at the previous two editions in Gold Coast (in 2018) and Glassgow (in 2014).
She is also the first Indian wrestler to win gold at the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games (Jakarta 2018).
Naveen Malik
Sports – Wrestling
Event – Men’s 74kg Freestyle
Making his Commonwealth Games debut in Birmingham, the 19-year-old grappler clinched his first gold medal in the showpiece when he beat Pakistan’s Muhammad Sharif Tahir in the final 9-0.
Naveen made her international debut at the U-23 World Championships last year and captured gold at 74kg in her second competition at the U-23 Asian Championships in June this year.
Nikhat Zareen
Sports – Boxing
Event – 50 kg Women
Reigning world champion Nikhat Zareen shone on stage in Birmingham by winning her first gold medal in the women’s 50kg flyweight final. She is also a bronze medalist at the 2019 Asian Championships.
Amit Panghal
Sports – Boxing
Event – Men’s 51 kg
Amit Panghal won his first gold medal in Birmingham on the penultimate day of the showpiece event.
The reigning Asian Games champion, he is also the only Indian male boxer to win a silver medal at the World Boxing Championships and the current world No. 1 in the International Boxing Association’s 52 kg class ( AIBA).
Nitu Ghanghas
Sports – Boxing
Event – Women’s 48 kg
Daughter Haryana, 21, won India’s first boxing medal in Birmingham when she won gold in the women’s 48kg final.
She is also a two-time world youth champion, having won back-to-back titles in 2017 and 2018.
Sudhir
Sport – Para Powerlifting
Event – Men’s Heavyweight
A para-athlete with a polio disability won India’s gold medal in the men’s heavyweight para-powerlifting event in Birmingham and opened India’s para-sports medal tally India.
Sudhir, who is also a bronze medalist at the 2018 Asian Para Games, lifted 208kg in his first attempt before increasing it to 212kg in his second attempt to collect 134.5 points and beat the Games record.
PV Sindhu
Sports – Badminton
Event – Women’s Singles
After winning silver (Gold Coast 2018) and bronze (Glasgow 2014), an elusive gold medal was missing for PV Sindhu’s kitten and she did it in style in Birmingham.
The double Olympic medalist gave India its first gold medal in badminton on the last day of this edition of the Games.
Lakshya Sen
Sports – Badminton
Event – Men’s Singles
Star commuter Lakshya Sen made a memorable CWG debut with his first gold medal in Birmingham.
Sen has been in fine form for some time now, having won his first Super 500 title in January, finishing second at the English Championships and German Open and also winning the prestigious Thomas Cup.
Chirag Shetty/Satwirksairaj Rankireddy
Sports – Badminton
Event – Men’s Doubles
The men’s doubles duo of Satwiksairaj Rankireddy and Chirag Shetty improved their medal color (silver at Gold Coast 2018) and clinched gold in Birmingham after beating England’s Ben Lane and Sean Vendy in back-to-back matches.
Rankireddy and Shetty were also part of the Indian squad that won the historic Thomas Cup title earlier this year.
Ashanta Sharath Kamal
Sports – Table Tennis
Event – Men’s Singles
Veteran Sharath Kamal’s name will go down in history as he became the second Indian paddler to win two Commonwealth Games gold medals, the first in Melbourne in 2006 and the last to arrive in Birmingham in style.
With his spectacular gold in Birmingham, Sharath’s medal tally rose to 13 at the showpiece event since his debut in the 2006 edition.
Sharath Kamal/Sreeja Akula
Sports – Table tennis
Round – Mixed Doubles
Sharath Kamal and Sreeja Akula clinched mixed doubles gold in Birmingham beating Javen Choong and Karen Lyne of Malaysia 3-1 in the final.
With Sharath Kamal cementing his CWG legacy with a bevy of medals, the top prize was a deserved reward for little Sreeja, who missed out on a bronze medal in singles.
Harmeet Desai, Sanil Shetty, Sharath Kamal, G Sathiyan
Sports – Table Tennis
Event – Men’s Team
India’s men’s table tennis team retained their Commonwealth Games gold medal after a close fight against Singapore in the final.
The likes of Harmeet Desai, Sanil Shetty, Sharath Kamal and G Sathiyan have given India their seventh since the sport was introduced to Manchester in 2002.
Bhavina Patel
Sports – Table Tennis
Round – Ladies’ Singles C3-5
Star para-paddler Bhavina Patel won her first Commonwealth Games gold medal in Birmingham.
Bhavina, who is also a silver medalist at the Paralympic Games in Tokyo, has won many national and international competitions over the years, including a silver medal in women’s singles class 4 at the Asian Para Table Tennis Championships in Beijing in 2013.
Eldhose Paul
Sports – Athletics
Event – Triple Jump
Kerala lad Eldhose Paul picked up a rare men’s triple jump gold medal and the 25-year-old also led a historic double in Birmingham.
The icing on the cake, India also won silver in the same event, with compatriot Abdulla Aboobacker finishing second with a best jump of 17.02m.
