CHENNAI: Sairaj Pardeshi was pretty clear what he had to become when he was only eight. By then, his elder sister Pooja and brother Jairaj have already started pursuing weightlifting. The eldest sibling faced resistance from father Rajesh initially but soon it fizzled out. The father had his reasons as being a scrap dealer, he wanted his children to excel in academics for a better future. Little did he know that the children would excel albeit in sports winning national and international medals.
The last from the family to take up lifting, Sairaj, turned out to be the most talented, winning medals at the national and international age group competitions. On Monday, the 17-year-old 81kg lifter from Manmad, Maharashtra, added yet another feather to his cap as he won a youth gold in overall category at the 2024 Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships in Doha, Qatar. He also won a silver each in the snatch and clean and jerk section.
"My father got emotional when we talked after the medal ceremony," Sairaj told this daily from Doha. Sairaj heaved 139kg in snatch and then went on to lift 171kg in the clean and jerk section. The efforts won him a silver each in both sections. Incidentally, it was the total lift of 310kg that earned him a gold medal at the event.
Sairaj credited Alakesh Baruah, chief weightlifting coach for the youth lifters at the NIS Patiala, for the success. "Ever since I made it to the youth national camp, Baruah sir has made life easy for me. It is under his guidance that I succeeded in winning medals at international level. I started with Pravin (Vyavahare) sir and then DD Sharma coached me at the SAI's NCOE in Aurangabad. All of them played a key role in my development as a weightlifter," added the lifter.
The championship is Sairaj's third international competition as he had taken part in the IWF World Youth Championships in May this year finishing fourth. He had lifted 135kg in snatch winning bronze and 165kg in C&J (total 300). Sairaj then competed at the 2024 Commonwealth Youth, Junior and Senior (Men & Women) Weightlifting Championships in September clinching a gold medal in the youth section and silver in the senior category.
"I talked to Sairaj soon after the medal ceremony. He got emotional after hearing the national anthem and watching the Indian flag during the ceremony," Vyavahare told this daily. Vyavahare, a teacher at Chhatre New English School in Manmad, honed the skills of the Pardeshi siblings. The trio lives near Jai Bhavani Vyayamshala run by Vyavahare and that only made it easy for them to start lifting weights at a very young age.
"They hail from a modest background. When Pooja, who later went on to win medals at the nationals, started lifting, the father was not happy. Obviously, he wanted them to study and have a better life. But soon he realised that it can be a good career option. Most importantly, all three of them started doing well in state level and national championships making father carefree," added the coach.
Sairaj will return to Patiala after the event and start preparations for the 2025 National Games scheduled early next year. "It will be my first National Games. I want to make it a memorable one by finishing on the podium. A little over a month is left so I cannot rest," said the lifter.
The National Games is not only the immediate target for Sairaj as once it is over then he has to focus on his 12th board examination. Interestingly, he has chosen PCM (Physics, Chemistry and Mathematics) for the examination. "I haven't studied anything yet but I'm quite confident that I can clear the exams if I get 15 days for preparations. Let's see what happens," signed off Sairaj.
Two silver for Sanjana
Meanwhile, Haryana's Sanjana claimed silver medals in both the 76kg youth girls and junior women's sections at the competition. She completed all six of her lifts successfully, with a best snatch of 90 kg and a clean and jerk of 120 kg. Kazakhstan's Zhumagali Ayanat won the gold medal with a total lift of 215 kg (94+121). Sanjana hails from Haryana.