Bhubaneswar: The All Odisha Inter Club Weightlifting Championship, 2023, drew to a close on Friday. Held at the Biju Patnaik HPC Weightlifting Hall in the Kalinga Sports Complex, the medal ceremony recognised Sports Hostel Bhubaneswar while Beer Hanuman Club, Ganjam was the 1st runner up and Shankar Physical Club, Ganjam was the 2nd runner up.
The closing ceremony was attended by Sports & Youth Services Secretary, Vineel Krishna, Director of Sports, Siddhartha Das, and officials of the Sports Department. Also, in attendance were representatives of High Performance Centres.
The state level tournament saw over 200 talented weightlifters from 10 districts and 20 weightlifting clubs across Odisha showcase their skills and compete for supremacy.
The margins were razor thin in the competition, with few medals separating the top three clubs. Sports Hostel Bhubaneswar won a total of 21 medals with 12 gold, 4 silver and 5 bronze. Beer Hanuman Club took home 22 medals, including 8 gold, 7 silver and 7 bronze, while Physical Club from Ganjam won 20 medals including 4 gold, 9 silver and 7 bronze medals.
Presenting the trophy to the champions at the closing ceremony, Sports & Youth Services Secretary, Vineel Krishna congratulated the athletes on their terrific performances and expressed his gratitude to all those who worked on the execution of the event.
He said, “Congratulations to all the winners and to all the participants who have put up fierce competition over the course of three days. The discipline of Weightlifting is consistently growing in Odisha, and we are committed to supporting and promoting it. I wish all athletes the very best for their future.”
Odisha has made numerous strides towards the development and promotion of Weightlifting in the state, including the state-of-the-art Odisha Weightlifting HPC, that trains several weightlifters. The state also frequently conducts coaching workshops to develop the sport at a grassroots level and has set up over 40 grassroot centres to groom promising weightlifters of the state.
The participating Clubs expressed their delight and gratitude to the Sports Department, Odisha Weightlifting Association and Weightlifting HPC team for the smooth conduct of the event.
Day 1 saw Mamita Malik bring home the gold in the 40 kg category, while Tulsi Sabar placed first in the 45kg category and Mina Singh triumphed in the 49kg category. Amongst the male competitors, B Ganesh placed first in the 49kg category while Bibhuti Bhushan Sahoo secured the first place in the 55kg (Group B) category.
Day 2 featured six competitions, in the 55k category (Group B), Naratam Badatia registered the first position while Sunil Pradhan won in the 61kg category. Sundarya Gollari was the foremost performer in the 67kg category and Kanha Behera impressed with a first-place berth in the 73kg category. Amongst the girls, Ranjit Mahi placed first in the 55kg category and Debaki Khilla placed first in the 64kg category. The 71kg category saw Anjula Gound outperform her peers to bag the gold.
Day 3 commenced with Rajesh Balbantray winning in the 89kg category and Aditya Sahu in the 96kg category. Rudara Madhab Badatia etched his name on the gold in the 81kg category. Meanwhile, Raj Ranveer Khuntia secured the premier position in the 102kg+ category. Subhakanta Biswal and Asustosh Patnaik placed first in the 109kg+ and the 109kg category.
