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Day 3 of Commonwealth Games saw Sathish Kumar Sivalingam competing in the Men's 77kg category. Being the reigning CWG gold medallist, he started as one of the favorites. In snatch, his best lift was 144kg and then, he lifted 169kg in his first attempt in clean & jerk to stamp his authority.
By the time the 25-year-old, who hails from Vellore, was going for his second attempt in clean & jerk, he had already won gold but still challenged himself to increase the margin of the win. He lifted 173kg in the 2nd attempt thereby finishing with a cumulative score of 317kg and did not even need to make his 3rd attempt.
The weightlifter from England, Jack Oliver was his closest competitor. Oliver won the silver medal by lifting 145kg in snatch, 167kg in clean & jerk with a cumulative score of 312kg.
Here are the 10 most interesting things to know about Sathish:
#1 Born in Tamil Nadu: Sathish was born on 23 June 1992 in Vellore, Tamil Nadu in a poor family. He is truly an inspiration for other budding weightlifters in the state as well as the country.
#2 Sathish is a college dropout: Completing his schooling from Government Higher Secondary School in Sathuvachari, he decided to do a BA in History in History at Abdul Hakeem College in Melvishram. However, it was clear to him early on that education was never his calling so he dropped out of college during the third year.
#3 He has worked with the Southern Railways, Chennai as a clerk in the past: As he is from a very modest family, he had to start working to support his family as well as himself for weightlifting.
#4 Weightlifting runs in his family: His father Sivalingam is also a former national-level weightlifter and has won two medals in national level competitions. Also, he quit the Army and started working as a security guard at Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT) University.
#5 His father ensured he had an intense training regimen from a tender age: His father ensured that he built a strong foundation for him as he started to train with his son from age 13. Sathish was made to work out as much as 5 hours a day. The pain he had taken then is ensuring Sathish is bringing glory to our nation now. In this sport, it is all about endurance, perseverance and years of hard work.
#6 He joined Atlas Weightlifting Training Center to continue his rigorous regimen: He won various accolades in both junior and senior categories in the State, National and Asian-level Games. He was always on the right track on becoming the champion.
#7 He already has a Commonwealth Games gold medal in his kitty: He won a gold medal in the last Commonwealth Games 2014 held in Glasgow as well finishing at the top in the same 77kg category.
#8 He is a pleasant man and is always seen smiling: Maybe this is due to his modest background and the fact that he has seen various hardships during his life.
#9 Tamil Nadu’s CM J Jayalalithaa awarded him with a prize money of Rs.50 Lakh for his amazing feat in the 2014 Commonwealth Games
#10 Weightlifter Pyrross Dimas is his all-time favorite. Also, Indian wrestler Yogeshwar Dutt, who won the bronze medal in the 2012 Olympics, is a huge inspiration for him.
