The story of India’s bronze medalist in weightlifting Harjinder Kaur starts from her utterly painful and tough beginning in her village Mehas in Nabha, Punjab. Harjinder’s journey to the podium at Birmingham was full of struggle. A look at her journey today from where all this started.
Harjinder’s family stays in a one-room house. She has been operating Chaff Cutter all her life for her family’s needs. Harjinder’s family had six buffaloes and worked primarily on contract on other’s farms. She was the youngest child of her parents, Sahib Singh and Kuldeep Kaur.
She was studying in a government girls’ school, and it was there itself when her sporting career started with Kabaddi. She used to ride a bicycle 5 KMs to play Kabaddi. When she left for attending college in Anandpur Sahib her father used to give her Rs 350 for bus fare and the same amount for her pocket money.
Her sporting journey has been a roller coaster in the form of her life only. She made a couple of shifts before finally settling for Weightlifting. In college, she was part of the Kabaddi team. Later when she joined the sports wing of Punjabi University in Patiala, there her coach applauded her caliber and inducted Harjinder into the University’s tug of war team, and finally for Weightlifting.
The main struggle in her life started after she initiated her training for sports. To support Hrajinder’s sports the family had to borrow money from relatives and friends, and also took a loan of Rs 50, 000 from the bank in their village. Her brother, Pratipal made a lot of efforts to carry forward the dream of his sister.
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Harjinder received immense support from her coach, during the lockdown induced by COVID, she practiced in the home of her coach Paramjit Sharma. She didn’t have her equipment and practiced continuously without caring to step out of the home.
In the year 2017, Harjinder’s first major achievement came in the form of gold at the state championship in Weightlifting, and her journey was on thereafter. In successive competitions after Harjinder won the All India University Championship, Silver medallist in senior nationals, and Khelo India Inter University Games. Earlier this year, Harjinder won gold in Senior Nationals in the 71 KG category and was later inducted into the national camp.
Harjinder lifted 93 and 119 KGs in snatch and clean & jerk respectively, cumulatively making 212 KG to settle for bronze adding another feather to the Indian Weighlifting side in Birmingham.