CWG 2022: Weightlifter Achinta Sheuli’s gritt and passion fuels him to make his games debut

Although
it
won’t
be
witnessed
by
the
common
eyes,
Achinta’s
life-long
hardships
and
internal
motivation,
honed
over
years,
will
reflect
in
his
performance
in
Birmingham.
A
chance
tryst
with
catching
a
kaata
ghudi
(thread-broken
kite)
helped
Achinta
enter
the
world
of
weightlifting
when
he
was
10.

Hailing
from
Dhulagarh
in
Howrah,
he
joined
his
brother
Alok
at
the
local
gym
and
used
to
go
all
7
days
of
the
week.
Initially,
it
was
just
baithak
(a
modified
squat)
and
don
(a
modified
pushup).
Lifting
came
later.

Achinta’s
passion
and
discipline
were
fuelled
by
the
conditions
back
home.
His
dad
used
to
work
as
a
labourer
to
do
the
most
to
provide
for
the
family.
However,
post
their
dad’s
death
in
2013,
Alok
gave
up
weightlifting
while
their
mother
took
up
tailoring
and
other
jobs
to
keep
the
house
in
order.
Achinta
stayed
put
with
his
passion
and
worked
in
silence.

Commonwealth
Games
2022:
Complete
List
of
Indian
Athletes
Qualified
For
Birmingham
CWG

“Everyone
is
focused
on
phone
nowadays.
You
need
to
have
a
target
in
life,”
Achinta
told
Sports
Authority
of
India,
showcasing
the
core
values
he’s
harnessed
over
the
years.
“Many
like
to
go
to
the
gym
to
impress
girls.
I
wanted
to
fight
as
my
family
background
was
not
too
good.
I
knew
I
had
to
face
a
lot
of
challenges
and
therefore,
I
tried
improving
step
by
step.”

This
passion
and
no-nonsense
attitude
took
him
a
long
way.
Achinta
participated
in
his
first
weightlifting
nationals
in
2013
in
Guwahati
and
came
fourth.
The
2018
Khelo
India
Youth
Games
gold
medallist
won
the
coveted
yellow
metal
on
the
big
stage
at
the
Commonwealth
Weightlifting
Championships,
Apia,
Samoa,
in
July
2019
in
both
the
junior
and
senior
categories.

Achinta
rode
on
the
winning
momentum
and
broke
six
national
weightlifting
records,
including
three
in
the
senior
group,
on
his
way
to
a
silver
medal
in
the
men’s
73kg
category
of
the
Junior
World
Championships
in
Tashkent
last
year.
Also
in
Tashkent,
he
became
the
73kg
champion
at
the
Commonwealth
Championships
last
year.

Achinta
is
a
part
of
the
12-member
Indian
Weightlifting
contingent
set
to
make
an
emphatic
mark
in
Birmingham.
Achinta,
a
part
of
the
Target
Olympic
Podium
Scheme,
will
definitely
look
to
make
this
event
count.
His
blistering
passion,
calmness,
desire
to
be
the
best
and
applications
of
visualisation,
self-talk
and
deep
breathing
techniques
will
make
him
reach
the
target.

(SAI
Media)