CHENNAI: Almost a year ago, Tamil Nadu weightlifter N Ajith suffered a heartbreak. Despite clinching 73kg gold in the national championships, he failed in the selection trials held to pick up the Indian team for the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Achinta Sheuli outperformed him to make it to the team and went on to pocket gold at the Birmingham CWG.
Ajith returned to his village, Sathuvachari, in the Vellore district to iron out flaws. The tiny hamlet has given renowned weightlifters including Olympians like M Tamil Selvan and Sathish Sivalingam to the country and Ajith wanted the legacy to continue.
"I worked at a local gym with my uncle N Baskaran. I also attended a few camps organised by my employer, Indian Railways. It helped as I beat Achinta in the 2022 Gujarat National Games before retaining the gold in the 2023 National Championships," Ajith told this daily.
The nationals gold meant he returned to the national camp at NIS Patiala where he, on Friday, made up for the loss he suffered a year back. He came out with flying colours in the trials held to select the national team for the Asian Championships scheduled in Jinju, South Korea from May 3 to 13. The continental championships are one of the five events a lifter has to compete in if he/she wishes to qualify for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Incidentally, the big event will be Ajith's senior international debut and he is excited about the opportunity as it will give him a chance to carry forward his village's legacy.
"My uncle Baskaran brought me back to the village from Bengaluru where we all were living. He motivated me to take up weightlifting at the age of 14. Had it not been for him, I would have been selling fruits with my father Narayana on the roadside in Bengaluru," said the 23-year-old Ajith.
At 17, he joined an SAI centre in Mayiladuthurai. There he honed his skills with coach S Shanmugavel, who is now secretary-general of the TN Weightlifting Association. "My uncle, who is a railway coach, took care of my family. He married my elder sister as my family shifted to the village from Bengaluru. My father's health deteriorated so he stopped working. It was my uncle who helped me with coaching, the requisite diet and the supplements I needed in the formative years. The good thing is I got a job with Indian Railways as a ticket collector so our financial woes are over now," the lifter added.
Ajith has a few goals in mind before the season begins. "My aim is to lift 150kg in snatch and 180kg in clean and jerk. I did that during training in Vellore. During the selection trials on Friday, I could lift only 141 and 170 in the respective sections but I hope to achieve the target by September before the Asian Games."
The competition will be tough if Ajith wishes to qualify for the Paris Games. The biggest competitor will be Sheuli. Another CWG gold medallist, Jeremy Lalrinnunga, who competes in 67kg, may also change his weight category to 73kg to fulfil his Olympic dream. "It was never going to be easy. Achinta and me both will compete in the 73kg at the Asian Championships. Jeremy may also come in the weight category. It's good as the competition will help us all in getting better," Ajith signed off.
India team for Asian C'ships
Women: Mirabai Chanu 49kg, S Bindyarani Devi 55kg.
Men: Subham Todkar 51kg, Jeremy Lalrinnunga 67kg, Achinta Sheuli 73kg, N Ajith 73kg.