Punjab weightlifter Mehak Sharma broke three of the four national records that tumbled on Monday en route to winning the gold medal in a stunning performance at the 38th National Games in Dehradun
The 29-year-old Mehak was the star performer on the final day of weightlifting competition.
Competing in the women's 87+ kg category, Mehak lifted 106kg in snatch, surpassing her previous national mark of 105kg. She then came up with 141kg in her final clean-and-jerk attempt, bettering her national record of 140kg.
With a total lift of 247kg, three kilograms more than her previous national mark of 244kg, Mehak beat her rivals by a huge margin for the gold.
The silver medal went to Purnima Pandey of Uttar Pradesh, who lifted a total of 216kg, while the bronze was secured by Satya Jyothi of Karnataka with a total lift of 201kg.
"I was confident because I had practised well, but I never thought I would break all three records. Now that I have done it, I am satisfied," an elated Mehak said after the win.
"I am very happy. I thank my coaches and my family members for this achievement. Nothing can be achieved in this game without the help of coaches."
Mehak had set her earlier three national records less than four months back during the National Championships in Himachal Pradesh in October.
Medals are awarded only for total lift of the participants.
In the men's 109+kg category, another national record was broken by S Rudramayan of Tamil Nadu when he lifted 175kg in snatch, bettering the national mark of 172kg in the name of Gurdeep Singh of Railways.
However, Rudramayan could not maintain his form in the clean and jerk, lifting 180kg and finishing with a total of 355kg, which earned him the silver medal.
The gold medal was won by Lovepreet Singh of Services, who lifted 165kg in snatch and 202kg in clean and jerk, bringing his total to 367kg. Uttarakhand's Vivek Pandey secured the bronze medal with a total lift of 280kg.
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