Indian weightlifter Harjinder Kaur took a silver medal in the fiercely contested Women's 69kg final of the Commonwealth Games 2026 at Glasgow, and showed her talent by keeping up with the pace and performance at the snatch and clean and jerk to become the most competitive in the world and to make some new international records at the same time, breaking all the records for personal bests.
Harjinder took a strong stance early in the competition during the snatch phase and landed a perfect sequence of lifts. After effortlessly clearing initial weights 96kg and 99kg, she dug deep to nail a personal-best 101kg. That was a new Games Record lift but 21-year-old Canadian junior world champion Charlotte Simoneau roared ahead with a 108kg lift, and the Indian star moved to second place heading into the interval.
A little disappointed, Harjinder’s clean and jerk started with a bang and she ended up holding 120kg. Continuing to push her absolute physical limits, she lifted 123kg on her second attempt to regain the lead and set a Games Record. In her final attempt she lifted 126kg, taking her lifetime best total to 227kg and earning her silver medal place. Simoneau got gold medal with 127kg lift for a total of 235kg, but Harjinder made a silver in her final attempt and that she had no fear.
This excellent finish to the world weightlifting game means that India is the seventh country to win a weightlifting medal at the Glasgow Games and further solidifies its role as the backbone of the country’s multi-sport campaign. Harjinder is part of a strong team of fellow athletes who have been able to shine for the country in Glasgow, most notably Mirabai Chanu, who won her third consecutive Commonwealth Games gold medal in the women’s 48kg category. A silver medal also goes to Rishikanta Singh in the 60kg category, Muthupandi Raja in the 65kg category, Gyaneshwari Yadav in the 53kg category and Valluri Ajaya Babu in the 79kg category and Bindyarani Devi in the 58kg category. Harjinder Kaur’s silver is an example to us this has been a very successful individual journey, she has been through so much, she is a great person.
