Has Maharashtra’s Sairaj Pardeshi Set New Weightlifting Records at KIYG 2025?

Patna, May 12 (NationPress) The Khelo India Youth Games 2025 saw weightlifters reaching remarkable heights, while athletes were on the verge of breaking existing records, all amid the excitement of this leading multi-discipline youth competition.

On the ninth day of the seventh edition of the Games in Bihar, trainee Sairaj Pardeshi from the Netaji Subhas Institute (Patiala) shattered three youth national records, securing the gold in the 81kg category in Rajgir. Meanwhile, Haryana’s Tamanna added the 10th youth record, marking yet another outstanding day.

It was the inaugural day of the athletics event at Patliputra Sports Complex in Patna, and it kicked off with a bang. Four meet records were established, all by male participants. Jithin Arjunan from Tamil Nadu achieved a new long jump record with a leap of 7.65m, surpassing Aryan Choudhary of Delhi's previous record of 7.42m set in Panchkula in 2022.

Bihar celebrated as Alka Singh clinched the under-18 shot put gold with a throw of 14.73 meters, marking the state’s fourth gold at the Khelo India Youth Games and propelling Bihar to the 13th position in the medal tally, up from 15th.

Kadir Khan from Uttar Pradesh set a new meet record in the under-18 boys’ 400m heats, clocking 47.67 seconds and breaking the previous record of 48.34 seconds held by Kerala’s Abdul Razzak from the Pune Games in 2019. Additional records were shattered in the evening, including boys’ discus throw by Hansraj Dhayal of Rajasthan (63.18 metres) and boys' 110m hurdles by Saif Farooq Chafei of Maharashtra (13.48 seconds).

Weightlifting was the highlight of the Khelo India Youth Games 2025, with each day of the competition bringing unforgettable moments. Sairaj Pardeshi from Maharashtra was particularly remarkable, breaking records in the 81kg category with lifts of 140 kg in snatch, 172 kg in clean and jerk, and a total of 312 kg. He left competitors M. Tarun from Andhra Pradesh (287 kgs) and Aayush Rana from Uttar Pradesh (264 kg) behind.

As of now, Maharashtra has secured five out of its 35 gold medals from weightlifting. The swimmers (seven) and archers (six) have also made significant contributions. Karnataka and Rajasthan are in second and third place on the medal tally, with Haryana in fourth.

Kerala made notable progress on the medal table, moving from 11th to 6th place after a strong performance in the kalarippayattu competition, winning all three available golds on Monday. Overall, Kerala has a total of eight golds, just one behind Madhya Pradesh, which sits in fifth.

In other news, Jammu and Kashmir celebrated their first kalarippayattu medal at the Khelo India Youth Games since winning gold in 2021. Nitin Kumar earned a bronze in the boys’ chuvadukal individual event, marking a significant achievement for the northern state. This was J&K’s second medal in KIYG 2025 Bihar following their historic boys’ volleyball gold at the Patliputra Sports Complex.

“I am truly elated. I dedicated four to five hours daily to practice. My coach, Danish, has been incredibly supportive. I’m thrilled that our efforts have borne fruit,” Nitin shared with SAI Media after his bronze win at Gaya's IIM Campus.