World Weightlifting C'ships: Narayan Ajith finishes fifth in Group C

Weightlifter Narayan Ajith, reigning national champion in men's 73kg, put up an underwhelming display to finish at the fifth spot in Group C at the World Weightlifting Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Saturday.

The Commonwealth Championships gold medalist lifted 140kg in the snatch and 172kg in the clean and jerk to finish with a total effort of 312kg.

While Ajith bettered his effort of 307kg (139kg + 168kg) at the Asian Championships and 308kg (138kg + 170kg) at the Commonwealth Championships, he failed short of his target of 320kg.

Ajith was dropped from the Asian Games squad along with Achinta Sheuli for not matching the ranking criteria of the Sports Ministry.

Weeraphon Wichuma of Thailand topped the Group with a total effort of 349kg (154kg+1195kg). The final standings will be tabulated after the completion of Group A proceedings.

On Friday, Ajith's compatriot Commonwealth Games champion Achinta Sheuli had lifted 285kg (130kg+155kg) in Group D to finish a disappointing eighth.

Lifters are assigned groups based on their entry. The lifters with the highest entry weights are placed in Group A, followed by B, and so on.

The 2023 World Championships and the 2024 World Cup are compulsory events for the Paris Games, under the 2024 Olympic qualification rule.

Apart from these two tournaments, a lifter also has to participate in three of the following events -- the 2022 World Championships, the 2023 Continental Championships, the 2023 Grand Prix 1, the 2023 Grand Prix II, and the 2024 Continental Championships.

The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) will publish the Olympic Qualification Rating (OQR) of each weight category at the end of the qualification period.