Jhandu Kumar returns to India’s hero’s welcome after historic CWG 2026 bronze

India’s first medalist at the 2026 Commonwealth Games, para powerlifter Jhand Kumar, received a rousing welcome on his return to Delhi after clinching bronze in the men’s heavyweight event in Glasgow. Family members, supporters and officials gathered at the airport to celebrate the 28-year-old, whose podium finish earned India its first medal of the Games.

While expressing gratitude for the warm welcome, Jhandu admitted that there was a sense of unfinished business after narrowly missing out on gold. The Para powerlifter said he was proud to hoist the Indian flag on the Commonwealth stage, but also pointed to a technical issue that hampered his latest attempt.

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#WATCH | Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games | Indian para powerlifter Jhandu Kumar, who won the men’s heavyweight bronze yesterday, received a grand welcome after arriving at the Delhi airport. pic.twitter.com/EU1XhNLf2Z— ANI (@ANI) July 26, 2026

“Thank you so much for all the love. It’s an amazing feeling. I secured the first medal for India and hoisted our national flag. It’s a great feeling,” Jhandu told reporters after arriving in Delhi.

“There’s a touch of disappointment that I couldn’t bring home the gold for this country. There are a few areas that need work and I’ll focus on them. There was a slight technical error and my coach was positioned a bit too far back which caused a problem.”

JHANDU MISSES RECORD ATTEMPT

Competing in the Men’s Heavyweight Para Powerlifting at the SEC Armadillo, Jhandu opened with a successful lift of 181kg before improving to 190kg on his second attempt. His final lift of 196kg was an ambitious effort that would have broken the Commonwealth Games record set four years ago in Birmingham.

However, the Indian lifter failed to complete the attempt and eventually settled for bronze with a score of 130.9 points under the body weight coefficient system used in the Commonwealth Games in powerlifting. Unlike conventional weightlifting, medals in this discipline are decided according to a formula that takes into account both the athlete’s body weight and his best successful performance.

The bronze also marked India’s first podium finish in para powerlifting at the Glasgow Games.

INDIA’S MEDALS ARE GROWING

Jhandu’s bronze opened India’s account in Glasgow before weightlifting star Mirabai Chanu added the country’s first gold medal with another dominant performance. India also claimed two silver medals, taking the total to four after four days of competition.

In the overall medal standings, India are eighth, with Australia leading the table after collecting 39 medals, including 17 gold. With several medal events still to come in various disciplines, India will be hoping that Jhandu’s historic podium finish and Mirabai’s gold medal will provide impetus for a strong campaign for the rest of the Commonwealth Games.

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Published on:

Jul 27, 2026 12:17 PM IST