CHENNAI: It was a memorable Sunday for Tamil Nadu lifter Muthupandi Raja as he won a Commonwealth Games silver in the 65kg category in Glasgow. That one piece of silver was as much a culmination of the 26-year-old’s hard work as it was about the sacrifices of his daily wage labourer parents — Muthupandi and Pechiyammal.Growing up in Sankaralingapuram village in Tuticorin district, the journey was difficult for Raja as he chased his dream in a small gymnasium. He had his brother Suresh, a national-level lifter for company, but the odds were tremendous. The parents, though, never allowed Raja’s ambition to die down, even as Suresh had to pull the curtains down on his lifting career due to financial constraints.“Raja’s talent was obvious. When we asked our parents if we could pursue weightlifting, they told us to do what we liked and supported us wholeheartedly,” Suresh told TOI on Monday morning.Suresh said, “My father bought us whatever we needed by taking loans from villagers, and the people in our village were equally supportive. During school vacations, I used to take up odd jobs to help my family.”The financial struggles apart, injuries and health setbacks, too, made Raja contemplate quitting the sport at one stage, but his family and coaches stood firmly behind him, convincing him to stay the course.He suffered an injury during the 2019 Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships and underwent surgery. Unable to complete his rehabilitation, and with the Covid-19 pandemic disrupting training and competition, Raja remained out of action for nearly two years. In 2022, he was diagnosed with jaundice and later underwent an appendicitis surgery, which further sidelined him for almost another year. It was during this difficult phase that he thought of quitting the sport.But the break helped him complete a course in strength and conditioning and the sports science mechanism that taught him how to deal with injuries. He developed interest in lifting again and was supported by coach Sidiq. Raja went on to clinch gold in the National Championships and set a national record in the 61kg category. After changing to the 65kg section, he finished ninth at the World Championships last year and came second in the Commonwealth Championships.Suresh, who has been with his brother through the journey, said it’s “just the beginning”. “This silver should be an inspiration for Raja and we want to see him compete at the Olympics. And he has it in him to play at the highest level,” Suresh said.The Sunday triumph made Suresh go down memory lane, as the two started their journey together, all those years ago. “Seeing my brother win a medal at the Commonwealth Games feels like winning the medal myself. What I could not achieve, my brother has done. It has been a long-time dream for us to see him win on a big stage. He missed out on winning in the CWG in 2018 and could not make it for the 2022 edition. The struggles have finally paid off,” Suresh, who does odd jobs, said.“We did not know anything initially about weightlifting as we went to the gym for strength training. We have many international-level players from Kovilpatti, and they encouraged us to take up the sport. After training under Shanmugavel and late Kabir from Kerala at the SAI centre, Raja earned a place in the Indian national camp in 2016. At his first major international competition, the 2018 Commonwealth Games, the then 18-year-old finished sixth. But the years that followed tested his resolve.It remains to be seen whether Raja can qualify for the Asian Games, having finished outside the top-six at the Asian Championships earlier this year. He was injured during the national championships in Nov last year which did not help his cause. If he does qualify for the Asiad, he will face a much sterner test and should be at his best, unlike in Glasgow, where he lifted 286kg (126kg snatch and 160kg clean&jerk) — more than 10kg below his personal best.
