Tainted lifter in Indian squad

The Indian Weightlifting Federation seems to have taken a calculated risk by naming tainted lifter Sateesha Rai in the 14-member squad for the Melbourne Commonwealth Games, in March.

Rai and Krishnan Madaswamy were stripped of medals they won at the Commonwealth Games in Manchester after testing positive. The lifter is part of the squad again and will compete in the 85 kg category.

After a month's training at the National Institute of Sports, Patiala, the IWF announced the squad for the Melbourne Games. Veteran Kunjarani Devi looks the best bet for a medal Down Under.

After the National championship in Yamuna Nagar, IWF had short-listed 30 lifters for the Patiala camp and picked the 14-member squad after trials.

Apart from the lifters -- male and female in equal numbers -- the team will be accompanied by four coaches.

The team:

Men: R Edwin and Vicky Batta (56kg), M Arun (62kg), C P R Sudhir Kumar (69kg), Mohammed Zakir (77kg), Tejinder Singh and Sateesha Rai (85kg).

Women: Kunjarani Devi (48kg), Renu Bala (58kg), B Prameelavali (63kg), L Monika Devi (69kg), Shailaja Pujari (75kg), Geeta Rani and Simple Kaur Burmah (plus 75kg).

Coaches: M Tamil Selvan, Jaswant Singh, Hansa Sharma and K Amarnadh.