Who Is Rakhi Halder, Gold Medalist At National Weightlifting C'ships?

Bengal-based weightlifter Rakhi Halder clinched gold in the 64kg category at the Senior Women's National Weightlifting Championships. She lifted her personal best - 93 kg in snatch and 117 kg in clean and jerk - a total of 210kg -- to clinch the gold medal in the 64kg category of the 35th edition of the event in Kolkata. She was 10kg ahead of her nearest competition Harjinder Kaur of Chandigarh.

Ranked 19th in the Olympic qualifiers list, Halder had produced a personal best of 218 kg at the Qatar International Cup last year to win the bronze medal. At the Commonwealth Championship in June 2019, Halder had clinched the gold with a total lift of 214-kg (94+120). Halder is a Railway employee.

Key Takeaways:

• Rakhi Halder from Bengal recently won gold in the 64kg category at the Senior Women's National Weightlifting Championships in Kolkata.
• “My sore left thigh prevented a smooth action. I will try to improve and qualify for the Olympics,” said Halder, who is ranked 19th in the Olympic qualifiers list.
• Halder is a Railway employee, and had produced a personal best of 218 kg at the Qatar International Cup last year to win the bronze medal.

It was a well-worked attempt that earned her a comfortable victory as her competitor Kaur registered 200kg. However, the total of 210kg was below her best showing of 218kg, including 95kg in snatch and 123kg in clean and jerk, in Qatar. The 26-year-old said, “My sore left thigh prevented a smooth action. I will try to improve and qualify for the Olympics." She had lifted a total 214kg in the World championships in Pattaya in September last year.

In Qatar, the athlete created two new national records by rewriting her own senior record in both the snatch and total lift with an effort of 218kg. She lifted 95kg in the snatch category and 123kg in clean and jerk to end with a total effort of 218kg.

Halder’s previous best had been 94kg in the snatch event and 120kg in clean and jerk (total 214kg) in the Commonwealth Championship where the Bengal weightlifter had won gold.

READ: A Breadwinner At 15, Poorna Sri Wins Weightlifting Gold In Khelo India

Very recently, former World champion and Commonwealth Games gold-medallist Saikhom Mirabai Chanu broke her own national record at the National Weightlifting Championships, by lifting a total of 203kg to win the 49kg gold.

The points collected by Halder and Chanu, 25-year-old weightlifter from Manipur, from this tournament will be added when the final rankings for 2020 Tokyo Olympics cut are done. To qualify for Tokyo 2020, a weightlifter should compete in at least one event in each of the three periods of six months (from November 2018 to April 2020), at least six events overall and win at least one gold and silver level event.

Also Read: Don’t let the bronze change the colour of your heart: Mary Kom to Sakshi Malik

Feature Image Credit: ANI

Read More Stories By Ria Das