Jeremy aims for Commonwealth Games gold

Youth Olympic champion weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga, who missed out on the Tokyo Olympics last year aims to win gold at the Commonwealth Games starting July 28.

Published : Jul 25, 2022 19:09 IST

Jeremy Lalrinnunga in action.
Jeremy Lalrinnunga in action. | Photo Credit: REUTERS
infoIcon

Jeremy Lalrinnunga in action. | Photo Credit: REUTERS

Youth Olympic champion weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga, who missed out on the Tokyo Olympics last year aims to win gold at the Commonwealth Games starting July 28.

After suffering from two injuries and COVID-19 last year, Jeremy is set to succeed at the senior level at the multi-sport event at the CWG 2022.

“It’s my first CWG and I’m feeling great. After the Youth Olympics this is going to be the biggest competition for me after four years as I had missed out on the Olympics,” Jeremy, who competes in the 67kg category, told PTI.

Jeremy came into light in 2018 when he became the first Indian to win a gold medal at the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires.

He managed to shatter the youth world record, but his performance at the senior level was not as expected.

“I understood that I have to work much harder because the total that I was lifting was not good enough. It also made me realise how tough Olympics is from junior to senior.” The past one year has been a tough one for the 19-year-old. At the Asian Championships, he finished in the eighth spot.

The Mizoram lifter revealed that he had a problem in his knee, which also affected his performance at the junior World Championships.

“There was a problem in my tendon in my knee. Water filled up behind my knee. I had to undergo surgery for that.” Due to his Asian Championship outing, he lost a spot in the Olympic Games. Despite his back ache before the World Championships, he managed to finish fourth.

“There was a problem near my spine, upper back but then also I competed at the world championships.” At the end of last year, he was tested COVID-19 positive.

“I got COVID-19 on December 31. I had throat pain and fever. After that my body weight came down to 63-62kg, it was a difficult time.

“I struggled to recover. I was in quarantine alone for 15 days,” said the jovial lifter.

“I got time to think and now I want to do well at the CWG. I will definitely look attempt to go beyond my personal best.”

“Yes, it’s good for me. But it is unfortunate that he was involved in doping. I feel sad for him, his four years are gone now. He shouldn’t have done it.”

(With inputs from PTI)

Sign in to unlock all user benefits
  • Get notified on top games and events
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign up / manage to our newsletters with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early bird access to discounts & offers to our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide to our community guidelines for posting your comment