Repeated injuries slow Commonwealth Games champion weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga's career

Weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga, who raised fresh hopes in Indian weightlifting, is going through a difficult phase of his career because of repeated injuries. At just 19, he won gold at the 2022 Commonwealth Games and brought glory to the country. Since then, continuing injuries have put a major brake on his career.

There was a time when Jeremy was regarded as one of the biggest names for the future of Indian weightlifting. Now a strong comeback is expected from him again.

Jeremy was born on October 26, 2002, in Aizawl, Mizoram. His father was a well-known boxer, but because of a shortage of money he could not go as far in the sport as had been hoped. Following in his father's footsteps, Jeremy too initially wanted to build a career in boxing. Then he watched his friends practise weightlifting and became interested in the sport. He decided to pursue weightlifting, and his father backed him on this journey.

Jeremy succeeded in the Army Sports selection trials and then moved to Pune for training. He began showing his ability at a young age.

At just 13, he won silver in the 56 kg category at the 2016 Junior World Weightlifting Championships and drew everyone's attention. He then won silver at an Asian junior event as well and earned a place in the national training camp.

In 2017, he won gold at the Commonwealth Youth and Junior Championships. In 2018, he also won gold at the Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, becoming the first Indian weightlifter to win gold at the Youth Olympics. After this success, Indian sport placed high hopes on him.

But injuries repeatedly challenged his career. He faced difficult circumstances during the Covid period. In 2021, he underwent surgery to remove a lump behind the knee. Even so, he did not give up and made a strong comeback by winning gold at the Commonwealth Championships in December 2021.

In February 2022, he suffered a spinal injury during training. Despite this, he did not lose heart. He qualified for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham and, at just 19, won gold in the 67 kg category.

After the Commonwealth Games gold, Jeremy's popularity grew considerably. People began to hope that he would go on to win medals for India at a major event such as the Olympics. But injuries over the past few years have posed a big challenge to his career.

Jeremy has returned from injuries several times before, which is why fans' faith in his spirit remains. Sports lovers are now watching whether the young weightlifter will once again beat the injuries and make a strong comeback.