Indian weightlifter Gyaneshwari Yadav took the hearts of the nation, winning India's first medal at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow by winning a silver in 53kg for the women with a weight lift of 199kg. Her technical and mental strength was so high that she was able to take the snatch event with a snatch of 82kg, 85kg and 88kg and then went ahead to the clean and jerk in the final with 103kg, 107kg and 111kg of weight and so on. She missed out on gold by just a single point behind Nigeria's Onome Omolola Didih but Gyaneshwari's big win was a celebration in a young athlete's career in a big way and she will go on to become a great fighter.
Gyaneshwari discussed the tough preparation process leading up to the Games, including a month-long training camp in Birmingham with a strong mindset in which she went to the platform with the aim of winning a podium position for her country, as she detailed in an exclusive interview with us after her record-breaking win. When we asked her about her initial reaction upon receiving the medal, she said that the first thing she did was send a video call to her mother. So she thought of her mother and cried when she saw her mom in tears of joy. The young weightlifter gave her own silver medal to her parents, the struggle and sacrifice that went on over years of struggle and sacrifice took over the young weightlifter.
Gyaneshwari’s international glory was molded in a small village of Bhodiya in Rajnandgaon through great struggle. Speaking of her early years she recalled the work of her father who would work hard for 20 hours a day and juggle college duties with riding a bicycle to take her and her brother to school and training classes, at night she would leave her cycle to him with one hand. Her family provided her with enough food and the equipment to survive. Those long nights and hard labor fields made her successful on the global stage, turning years of quiet resilience into a proud reality for her family and country.
And beyond her family, Gyaneshwari got great inspiration from Indian weightlifting legend Mirabai Chanu, whose tradition of achievement and humble encouragement (a congratulatory hug right after the event) were always a motivating force. Now that weightlifting has shattered the stereotypes that were promoted in society that weightlifting would destroy a girl’s body shape or make her look like a boy, Gyaneshwari is now an advocate for women in sports in India and encourages girls to take up any sport with passion. Just when she goes overseas to the Asian Games and wants to improve her game in the way that she was trained in the first place, Gyaneshwari Yadav would be a great example for young girls to learn and excel in any sport.
