COMMONWEALTH GAMES: Nigeria’s Augustina Nkem Nwaokolo shattered three Games records in the women’s 48 kg event to pocket the first gold of the CWG at the Indira Gandhi Sports Complex here on Monday.
The 17-year old school girl’s determined effort at the weightlifting arena also shattered the host nation’s dreams of a golden start to the Games after all the ceremonial glitter in the previous evening. Hot favourite Soniya Chanu Ngangbam had to settle for the silver, followed by fellow Indian Sandhya Rani Devi Atom for bronze.
Nwaokolo totalled 175 kg, lifting 77 kg in snatch and 98 kg in clean and jerk, to eclipse Kunjarani Devi’s marks of 75kg and 94kg for a total of 165 kg. Chanu had scores of 73 and 94 for a total of 167 while Sandhya Rani’s lifts read 70:95: 165. The writing on the wall was clear for Chanu when the Nigerian loaded up a lead of four kilograms at the end of the snatch section. Despite clean and jerk in the second session being Chanu’s strong point, it was always going to be a tough ask to make that up.
However, to her credit, the 30-year old Indian, who had claimed the Commonwealth Championship gold last year, kept an anticipating audience interested till her final attempt at103 kg. Had she managed it, the gold would have been India’s with a new CWG record.
It was not to be, and the Nigerian contingent went dancing in the isles.
Sandhya Rani, who edged Malaysia’s Zaira Zakaria for the bronze on a lower weigh in, had the clean and jerk record for a few moments with a 97 kg effort before Nwaokolo settled the issue with her second attempt.
