Ludhiana weightlifter Vikas Thakur who won medal in Commonwealth Games once aimed to be a boxer

LUDHIANA: Vikas Thakur, 29, the Ludhiana heavyweight lifter who won his third consecutive medal in the Commonwealth Games, aimed to be a boxer as a child, but had to shift to weightlifting at the age of 8 as the city lacked any facilities for training in boxing.
Vikas won a silver medal in the Birmingham Commonwealth Games by lifting a total weight of 346 kg, including 155 snatch and 191 clear and jerk.

Seeing the three-year-old’s energy and zest for sporting activity even at the age of three, when he could undertake at least three rounds of Ludhiana Guru Nanak Stadi- um, Vikas’s father Brij Lal Thakur, a railway employee, thought his son would excel in the sports field.
“The sports infrastructure in Ludhiana was not that good when Vikas started practicing and the situation is no better now. I wanted him to become a boxer, however there was no boxing training center. Ludhiana’s Guru Nanak Stadium is in dilapidated condition and the lone weightlifting club got sealed sometime. So, I got him enrolled at the Ludhiana Weightlifting Club. Youngsters don’t lack talent. If provided facilities, more medallists can be produced,” Brij Lal said.
Vikas said, “Having ground level sports facilities is a must as good training at an early age certainly would help India win more medals. I request Punjab government to invest in sports infrastructure. ”
Besides three Commonwealth medals, Vikas won a bronze medal in EGATInternational weightlifting championship, Thailand, in 2019 and is current national record holder with 353 kg, including 159 snatch and 196 clean and jerk.