Nooh Dastgir Butt clinches gold as WAPDA win weightlifting event

PESHAWAR: The country’s leading weightlifter Nooh Dastgir Butt (+109 kg) won gold as WAPDA won the men’s weightlifting event of the 33rd National Games in Abbottabad on Friday, writes Alam Zeb Safi.

Sources said roof of the under-construction hall where weightlifting competitions were being held were leaking after heavy overnight and Friday morning rain. The hall is housed at the Government Post Graduate College Abbottabad. But they made it clear that this did not affect the contests because it is a big hall.

WAPDA secured 136 points which they earned by virtue of seven gold medals, two silvers and one bronze. Army and Railways finished second with 59 points each. Army took one gold medal, one silver and five bronze and Railways secured one gold and three silver.

Higher Education Commission (HEC) finished third with 48 points which they earned by virtue of two silver and three bronze medals. Punjab picked one gold and two silver medals while Islamabad claimed one bronze.

In 55kg, Sharjeel Butt of Punjab took gold with a total of 231kg, Abdul Ghafoor of WAPDA claimed silver with a total of 207kg and Kamal Sajjad of HEC picked bronze by lifting a total of 165kg.

In 61kg, international Mohammad Shehzad of WAPDA clinched gold with a total of 252kg, Muneeb Yousuf of Army claimed silver with a total of 238kg and Sohaib Kaleem of HEC claimed bronze with 237kg.

In 81kg, Haider Ali of WAPDA claimed gold with 320kg, Ibrar Khalid of Railways got silver with 258kg and Asghar Ali of Islamabad claimed bronze with 256kg.

The 89kg gold went to Shahid Sultan of Army who lifted a total weight of 315kg, Abdul Rehman of HEC claimed silver by lifting 314kg and Furqan Anwar of WAPDA clinched bronze with 298kg.

The 96kg gold went to Zohaib Manzoor of Railways with 315kg, Mohammad Tahir of WAPDA picked silver with 306kg and Umair Ali of WAPDA claimed bronze with 305kg.

In 102kg, international Usman Amjad Rathore of WAPDA got gold by lifting a total weight of 330kg, Umar Farooq of HEC with 326kg got silver and Afzaal Sohail of Army with 280 kg claimed bronze.

In 109kg, Hanzala Dastgir of Punjab got gold by lifting a total of 338kg, Hasnain Azam of Railways claimed silver with a total weight of 290kg and Khurram Ali of Army took bronze with a total weight of 393kg.

In +109kg, the country’s premier weightlifter Nooh Dastgir Butt of WAPDA claimed gold with a total weight of 393kg, Abdullah Butt of Punjab finished with a silver medal with 387kg and Zohaib Ahmed of Army took bronze by lifting a weight of 315kg.

But it was uncertain if any record had been set because International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) has revised the weight categories, extending the classes to ten from previous eight. And since then no national event has been organised by Pakistan, so it’s a new beginning for the country’s leading fighters at the national level in the revised weights.