Gold Rush at CWG: India bags 8 gold medals on penultimate day
) From the boxing ring to the shooting range to the athletics arena, it was India shining on the penultimate day of the 21st Commonwealth Games where the country claimed its biggest single-day haul of the ongoing edition, ensnaring eight gold medals across five disciplines.
The boxers picked up three, the shooters added one, the wrestlers claimed a couple, while the paddlers and the track-and-field contingent picked up one each on a truly golden day for the country, which also yielded five silver and one bronze medal.
The country held on to the third position in the overall medal tally with 59 medals — 25 gold, 16 silver and 18 bronze medals.
It all started at the shooting ranges in Brisbane, where Sanjeev Rajput shattered the Games’ qualifying record before finishing on top in the 50m rifle 3 position final.
“I would say it was a weak final for me because I have been shooting 458 plus all the time, but this time it was weak in the kneeling position and I had to cover it somehow in the prone but, still again, not so good in the standing,” said the shooter, not particularly satisfied with his effort but one which was enough to get him his first CWG gold.
He had won a bronze (2006) and a silver (2014) in the earlier editions.
The wrestlers were at it at the Carrara Sports and Leisure Center. Sumit (125kg) and Vinesh Phogat (50kg) picked up the top honours in their respective categories even as Olympic bronze-medallist Sakshi Malik (62kg) settled for a third-place finish, along with Somveer (86kg).
At the boxing arena of the Oxenford Studios, M C Mary Kom (48kg) was joined by Vikas Krishan (75kg) and Gaurav Solanki (52kg) in scripting history. The boxers, led by three, finished with nine medals in all, their best ever performance, two better than the previous best attained at 2010 Delhi Games.
While Mary Kom became the first Indian woman boxer to claim a CWG gold, Vikas became the first to have gold in both the Asian and Commonwealth Games.
