PV Sindhu to Nikhat Zareen, Meet the Golden Girls of Commonwealth Games 2022

The 2022 Commonwealth Games held in Birmingham might have drawn to a close, but the Indian contingent has given us enough reasons to be proud! Walking away with 61 medals in total (22 gold, 16 silver and 23 bronze) India has given its best ever CWG performance. Leading the charge were our incredible sportswomen, including the women’s lawn bowling team that created history by cinching our country’s first-ever gold in the sport.

From Badminton icon PV Sindhu to wrestling legend Vinesh Phogat (who scored a hat-trick of CWG gold medals with her 2022 win), allow us to introduce you to our trail-blazing golden girls. They’ve all made us extremely proud!  

 

PV Sindhu

In the final match of women's singles at the Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham, Badminton star PV Sindhu defeated Michelle Li of Canada to win gold. While PV Sindhu has won two Olympic medals (one silver and one bronze) this is her first-ever Commonwealth Games singles gold medal! 

 

Nikhat Zareen

The reigning world champion boxer, Nikhat Zareen bagged India’s third gold (after Nitu Ghanghas and Amit Panghal) in boxing at the Commonwealth Games 2022. Nikhat outpunched Ireland's Carly MC Naul in the women's light flyweight final and secured a unanimous verdict. Nikhat’s win brought India its 17th gold medal!

After her iconic win, Nikhat took to Twitter to dedicate her medal to her mother and our motherland. She wrote, “Finally, here is my gift as promised to my Ammi and the Motherland. Ecstatic to win the Gold after a thoroughly joyous CWG in Birmingham. Your support and love moves me.” 

 

Mirabai Chanu

In a proud moment for the entire country, iconic weightlifter Mirabai Chanu bagged India’s first gold medal at the 2022 Commonwealth Games. Her remarkable performance shattered four global records, including her own, and set the bar extremely high. The Olympic silver medalist aggregated a total of 201kgs (88kg + 113kg).

Mirabai headed into the competition as an overwhelming favourite in her weight category. Not only did she smash the Commonwealth record in clean and jerk (a weightlifting movement) but also the total lift. This win marks the third CWG win for Mirabai. She bagged the silver and gold in the Glasgow and Gold Coast games respectively. What an incredible feat! 

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Indian Lawn Bowls Women's Team

Lovely Choubey, Pinki Singh, Nayanmoni Saikia and Rupa Rani Tirkey struck gold after beating the South African team 17-10. This match will go down in history as not only an iconic win but also the first-ever gold won by India in this sport. *Standing ovation for the entire team*! 

 

Sakshi Malik

Sakshi Malik became a household name after she became the first woman to win a medal in the 2016 Rio Olympics. Now, 6 years later Sakshi finally had another golden moment in Birmingham when she defeated Ana Godinez Gonzales of Canada and finished on top of the podium in Women's 62kg freestyle wrestling. It was an amazing win!

Vinesh Phogat Hailing from a legendary wrestling family, Vinesh Phogat is creating history in her own way. She marked a golden hat-trick when she defeated Sri Lanka's Chamodya Keshani Maduravlage Don in women's 53kg freestyle wrestling. Vinesh had won gold at Glasgow and at the Gold Coast. This is another win for the ages! 

 

Nitu Ghangas

When Nitu defeated Demie-Jade of England in the women's 48kg category to snatch up the gold, it marked India’s first top podium finish in boxing. The 21-year-old pugilist landed a storm of punches leaving her opponent with no chance of a comeback.