Teen from Chennai wins three medals at World Powerlifting Championship

Aadharsh Srikaran from Chennai wins three medals at the World Powerlifting Championship in Kyrgyzstan

On June 27, 18-year-old Aadharsh Srikaran received a rousing reception at Chennai International Airport as he had bested the opposition in two categories at European Championship organised by World Powerlifting Congress in Kyrgyzstan, to win two gold medals. In another category, he won a silver. The championship took place between June 21 and 25.

This is a remarkable achievement for this teenager who has been in this sport for two years, and had a few odds to beat to compete in his first international outing.

“Pain on account of an injury I had suffered on my left thigh a few years ago resurfaced two weeks before the competition and I was feeling low,” says Aadharsh.

A nutritious diet every single day is important for powerlifting but things went awry for Aadharsh.

“My body is accustomed to getting rice as carbohydrates but I did not get it during my week-long training stint,” says Aadharsh, who would any day go in for the curd rice and rasam sadam prepared by his mother.

He weighed 92 kilos when he started rigorous practice for the tournament and kept a strict vigil on his weight. And he made himself eligible for the under 90 kg category. “In powerlifting, 70% of the preparation has to do with your diet and only the rest with the workout; so, after all the hard work, I am happy I also got a silver as Overall Best Lifter,” says Aadharsh, a BSc (Sports and Exercise Science) student of Sri Ramachandra Institute of Higher Education and Research.

Aadharash says he was able to take part in the international event because of his performance at district, state and national levels over the last two years.