CHENNAI: Indian weightlifter Martina Devi made a spectacular comeback from the brink of elimination only to fall short of a medal in the women's 86kg weight category at the Scottish Event Campus Armadillo in Glasgow on Thursday. She eventually finished fifth with a total lift of 245kg (105kg in snatch and 140kg in clean and jerk).
Emily Campbell finished first with a total lift of 278kg (115 in snatch and 163 in C&J). The total lift by Campbell is a Games record while her best C&J lift is a Commonwealth and Games record. Siti Aqilah Farhana Draman of Malaysia walked away with silver with a total lift of 253 (113+140). Canadian lifter Etta Mae Love finished third with a total lift of 250kg (106kg+144kg).
Having failed to lift 103kg in her first two attempts in the snatch section, the 20-year-old Manipuri lifter was on the verge of elimination. The Indian team think tank then increased the weight to 105kg for her final attempt. It was a bold tactical call but head coach Vijay Sharma knew she has to lift the listed weight to stay in top-5 after the snatch section. Martina lifted the weight much to her and coaches' relief and broke down while going backstage.
She was placed fifth after the snatch section trailing by one kilogram to her nearest rival - the Canadian lifter, who eventually bagged a bronze medal. In their bid to make up for the lost position in top-3, the team management set an entry weight of 140kg in her first clean and jerk attempt. Martina lifted it successfully bringing herself back in the medal contention. She, however, failed to lift 144kg in her second attempt leaving the management with no choice than to enter 146kg for her third and last attempt. A successful lift could have brought Martina back in top-three but she couldn't lift the weight even as her opponents made a huge gain by lifting the respective weights entered by them.
Martina's total lift of 245kg was the same as New Zealand's Tui-Alofa Patolo (115 and 130 in snatch and clean and jerk section respectively) but the latter was placed fourth on the basis of fewer failed attempts. Martina's failed attempts were four while the New Zealand failed to lift last two attempts in the C&J section.
The Indian weightlifters have won seven medals so far in the competition including a gold by the ace lifter Mirabai Chanu, seven silver and a bronze medal.