Commonwealth Games 2026: Raja Muthupandi settles for silver in men's 65kg weightlifting

India's Raja Muthupandi claimed the silver medal in the men's 65kg weightlifting event at the Commonwealth Games 2026, narrowly missing out on gold after a gutsy performance at the SEC Armadillo in Glasgow.

Raja recovered from a disappointing start in the snatch, where he failed to clear 126kg on his opening attempt, by successfully lifting the same weight on his second try. The Indian then attempted 129kg but was unsuccessful, ending the snatch phase in second place with 126kg.

The clean and jerk proved to be equally dramatic. Raja reduced his opening attempt from 160kg to 158kg, but failed to register a successful lift. Facing elimination, he responded with a composed 160kg lift in his second attempt, setting a new Commonwealth Games clean and jerk record and briefly moving into the gold medal position with a total of 286kg.

Malaysia's Aznil Bin Bidin Muhamad, however, reclaimed the lead with a 166kg clean and jerk, finishing with a Games record total of 299kg to secure the gold medal. Raja went all out with 170kg on his final attempt in a bid to overtake the Malaysian but could not complete the lift, settling for silver.

Papua New Guinea's Morea Baru took the bronze medal with a total of 282kg. Raja finished with an overall lift of 286kg (126kg snatch + 160kg clean and jerk).

The silver capped another successful day for India's weightlifters. Earlier, Mirabai Chanu won a historic third consecutive Commonwealth Games gold in the women's 48kg event, while Rishikanta Singh bagged silver in the men's 60kg category after setting a Commonwealth Games record in the snatch.

With one gold, two silver and one bronze, India now has four medals at the Commonwealth Games 2026.