Cheki Gyeltshen won gold in the senior men’s category in the first-ever weightlifting championship organised in Thimphu on July 20. He lifted a total of 200 kilograms.
In the women category, Sonam Choki claimed the title lifting a total of 90 kilograms.
In the junior male’s category, Karma Wangchuk lifted a total of 110 kilograms and won the gold. Sanjana Gurung took the top spot in the junior female’s category, after lifting a total of 69 kilograms.
Bir Bhadur won the youth category for which there were only male participants.
The youngest contenders were Tshegyel and Teenzee P Tshoyang, both 11 years of age. Besides winning the third spot in the junior male and female categories, they were also awarded special recognition medals for participating in the championship despite being underage.
“I am happy that I took part and even won a medal. My coach, fellow athletes and a Chinese weightlifting athlete inspired me. I want to become like the Chinese athlete, Lu,” Tshegyel, said.
“I love weightlifting. My father, who is a weightlifting coach, is my inspiration. I get to learn a lot from him. When I grow up, I will become a weightlifting athlete and try and win the Asian championship,” Teenzee P Tshoyang said.
Thirty athletes took part in the championship, which will now be among the most prestigious events on the country’s sports calendar. The participants competed in five different categories of senior male and female, junior male and female, and youth.
Weightlifting has two lifts: the Snatch and the Clean and Jerk. The snatch is a controlled, balanced lift of the barbell from the floor to an overhead position in a single motion. The Clean and Jerk is a two-stage lift, allowing the athlete to regain his or her composure half-way through before pushing the barbell above the individual.
The championship was the first major activity the Bhutan Weightlifting Association organised after its establishment in 2017. Going by the numbers of participants and audience present, the sport’s future in the country looks promising.
” I can see how excited our Bhutanese athletes are. I feel that in the future, we will be able to do well. In the next five years, I am hopeful that the team will evolve, especially junior and youth lifters will evolve and bring in a lot of medals for Bhutan,” Sonam Tobgay Dorji, the President of Bhutan Weightlifting Association, said.
The event is an official qualification for the winners to take part in the South Asian Games, which will be held in Nepal towards the end of this year.
