Weightlifter Lovepreet claims bronze on CWG debut

India's Lovepreet Singh won a bronze in men's 109 kg to continue the country's medal rush in weightlifting at the Commonwealth Games here on Wednesday. The 24-year-old son of a tailor from Amritsar lifted a personal best of 355 kg, including a new national record of 192 kg in clean and jerk, to finish third on the podium.

A steady Lovepreet improved from 157kg to 163kg in his final attempt of snatch to be joint second with Canadian Pierre-Alexandre Bessette. However, the intense competition got the better of him in the clean and jerk, as he slipped to third position.

"I could not have been happier. This was my first big competition at the International stage and I produced my best ever show to return with a medal," said the former Commonwealth junior champion. Junior Nyabeyeu of Cameroon claimed the gold medal with a total lift of 361 kg, while Jack Opeloge of Samoa bagged the silver by lifting 358 kg in the event. Lovepreet could have joined his father's business, but his family wanted to make him a sportsperson, and his journey began at the age of 13.

Nitu, Hussamuddin assure India of two boxing medals Birmingham

Nitu Ganghas showed her ferocity to demolish Northern Ireland's Nicole Clyde in the women's 48kg category and assure India their first boxing medal at the ongoing Commonwealth Games here on Wednesday.

Soon after Mohammad Hussamuddin defeated Tryagain Morning Ndevelo of Namibia in a 4-1 split verdict to advance into the semifinals of the men's 57kg and fetch his second consecutive CWG medal.

The 28-year-old from Nizamabad had won bronze in Gold Coast four years ago. Hussamuddin had to work hard for the win as it was a fiercely contested bout and could have gone either way. Earlier, the 21-year-old from Dhanana district in Bhiwani, Nitu dominated the first two rounds against Clyde before the bout was abandoned with the outcome only going one way.

Making her CWG debut, Nitu had big shoes to fill in the weight category of the great MC Mary Kom, who injured herself during the selection trials held before the mega event. The Indian contingent had trained in Ireland before coming to Birmingham and that helped Nitu in the fight against Clyde.

Indian women register 3-2 win over Canada, enter semi-finals

The Indian women's hockey team survived some anxious moments before beating lower-ranked Canada 3-2 in its must-win Pool A match to qualify for the semifinals of the Commonwealth Games here on Wednesday. The Indians looked in control of the match till the 22nd minute, having taken a 2-0 lead over their world no.15 opponents through goals from Salima Tete (3rd minute) and Navneet Kaur (22nd).

But the Canadians, then, produced a lion-hearted performance to level the scores through goals from Brienne Stairs (23rd) and Hannah Haughn (39th). With England already assured of a semifinal berth from the pool with a 3-1 win over India on Tuesday, it was a do-or-die match for the Savita Punia-led side, with Canada needing just a draw to progress as they had a better goal difference.

Locked 2-2, Janneke Schopman's girls responded brilliantly when Lalremsiami scored off a rebound, after a penalty corner in the 51st minute. The Indians came out aggressive in the first quarter and dominated the proceedings from the start.