Young Odisha lifters Jyoshna Sabar and Harsabardhan Sahu made India proud, winning the bronze medal in youth women 40kg and youth men 49kg weight categories respectively on the opening day of the IWF World Youth & Junior Weightlifting Championship 2025, which is being held in Lima, Peru from April 30 to May 5.

Jyoshna won the bronze with a total lift of 128kg. She also secured the silver medal in clean & jerk with an effort of 72kg. But the 17-year-old girl from Gajapati district finished fourth in snatch, lifting 56kg.

A cadet of Bhubaneswar-based Odisha-Tenvic Weightlifting High Performance Centre, Jyoshna has been winning medals in World Youth Weightlifting Championship every year since making her debut in 2023.

Harsabardhan, in fact, won three bronze medals _ one each in snatch, clean & jerk and total, lifting 87kg, 110kg and 197kg respectively. This was the first international medal for 16-year-old Harsabardhan, who hails from Silk City, Berhampur.

Harsabardhan started his career at Sri Sankar Physical & Cultural Club in Berhampur, under the guidance of Jeetendra Kumar Sahu. Now he trains at Army Sports Institute in Pune.

Odisha Weightlifting Association president Chitta Ranjan Swain congratulated both Jyoshna and Harsabardhan, and wished them greater laurels in future.
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PHOTO: World youth medal winning Odisha lifters Harsabardhan Sahu and Jyoshna Sabar in Lima on 30 April 2025.