Sudhir won India’s sixth gold medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham with a fine performance in the Para Powerlifting men’s heavyweight final on Thursday.

In what was the last event of a busy day for Indian athletes, Sudhir stole the show by working his way to the top of the podium with a best lift of 212kg.

Sudhir clinched the gold medal with his final attempt still left. He went for a personal best with his last lift but could not succeed, but it was a brilliant performance nonetheless.

Here’s some information on Sudhir via Sports Authority of India:

SUDHIR

DISCIPLINE: Para Powerlifting

Event: Men’s Heavyweight Over 72 Kg 

Date of Birth: 27th Oct 1994, 28 years 

Hometown: Village-Lath, Sonipat Haryana 

Training Base: Sonipat, Haryana

Coach:  Mr. Jitender Pal Singh

Background:  Sudhir is an Asian Bronze Medallist, born into a farmer’s family in Sonipat, Haryana. Due to a high fever, he contracted polio at the age of four. He didn’t let his disability get in the way of his determination. He had a lifelong interest in sports, which led to his interest in weight lifting. He began his sporting career in 2013 and clinched a gold medal in his first nationals in 2016. He made his international debut in 2018 at the Asian Para Games 2018 and clinched the bronze medal. Unfortunately, his father passed away the same day he won the medal. He graduated with a BA in Sanskrit from MDU Rohtak. He is currently working as a Senior Coach (Weightlifting) for the Government of Haryana.

He was also named “Strong Man of India” at the 17th Senior and 12th Junior National Para Powerlifting Championships in 2018.

Achievement:

  • Silver Medal – World Cup, Dubai, 2018
  • Bronze Medal - World Para Powerlifting Asia Oceania Open Championship 2022
  • Bronze Medal - Asian Para Games, Jakarta,2018
  • 6 times National Gold Medallist (2016 -2022)

Key Government Interventions:

  • Financial assistance towards participation in international competitions and training.
  • Financial assistance towards training, kit and equipment in National Camp.

Equipment Support: Nil

Foreign/ Support Staff: No

Days in National Coaching Camp: 08 Days (June 2022)

And here’s some information on the Para Powerlifting event via CWG 2018 website:

Para powerlifting involves a bench press technique, with athletes taking position on a specially designed bench. Holding the bar at arm’s length with locked elbows, once given the ‘start’ signal, the athlete lowers the bar down to the chest, holds it motionless on the chest, then presses it upwards, evenly, until the elbows are locked again. At this point, the bar must be held still. Then athletes receive another signal to ‘rack’ the bar.

Scoring gets a little complicated. Range of bodyweight categories will be combined to create the two lightweight and heavyweight divisions. A formula called the AH (Haleczko) formula is applied to the best successful lift of each athlete, providing a final point score which determines placings. The formula is applied with the intention of providing a fair comparison of performance between athletes of different sizes.