Karnam Malleswari is one of the few athletes in the history of Indian sports who deserves to be remembered for generations to come. The reason behind this is the feat she achieved at a time when not many women were allowed, inspired, or pushed to lead from the front in sports. At the 1952 Summer Olympics in Helsinki, Khashaba Dadasaheb was the first Indian man to win an individual medal. KD Jadhav won a bronze wrestling medal in the Men's bantamweight wrestling at the 1952 Helsinki Olympics.
India didn't win a single individual medal in the next six Olympics (Melbourne 1956, Rome 1960, Tokyo 1964, Mexico City 1968, Munich 1972, and Moscow 1980). However, at the 1996 Atlanta Olympics, Leander Paes became the second Indian man to win a medal. He won India's second individual medal, a bronze in Men's singles tennis event. However, in the very next 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, Karnam Malleswari became the first Indian woman to win an individual medal, a bronze medal, at the Olympics in the 69 kg weightlifting event.
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At the age of 25, she was standing on the podium and received her bronze medal, setting an example for millions of Indian girls across the nation. Karnam Malleswari lifted 110 kg in the snatch and 130 kg in the clean and jerk categories, which took her total weight to 240 kg. Apart from being the first Indian woman, she was also the first athlete to win a medal in weightlifting at the Olympics. Not only this, Karnam's bronze medal was the only medal that India secured at the 2000 Sydney Olympics, which made it even more special for the country.
Karnam Malleswari was born on June 1, 1975, into a Telugu Brahmin family, living in Voosavanipeta, located in Andhra Pradesh's Srikakulam district. At the age of 12, Karnam was training for weightlifting under the famous coach, Neelamshetty Appanna. Karnam was blessed to have parents, who supported and encouraged her to the fullest. One of Karnam's sisters was living in Delhi back then, and in order to enhance her game, she shifted to her sister's place. After coming to Delhi, Karnam got a lot of exposure and was trained under some of India's best coaches, which took her game to another level.
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Soon, Karnam Malleswari's talent was recognised by the Sports Authority of India and in 1990, she joined the national camp. After just four years at the national camp, she surprised everyone in 1994 when she won the weightlifting world championship in the 54 kg category. In the following years, she performed exceptionally well at the World Championships. Karnam won a bronze medal in 1993 Melbourne, a gold medal in 1994 Istanbul, a gold in 1995 Guangzhou, and a bronze in 1995 Guangzhou. Not only this, she also won a silver medal in the 1994 Hiroshima Asian Games and 1998 Bangkok Asian Games.
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With all these exceptional achievements in her weightlifting career, Karnam Malleswari received the prestigious Arjuna Award in 1994 and the Padma Shri Award in 1999. When Karnam won the bronze medal for India in weightlifting at the Sydney Olympics 2000, she was given the title of 'Bharat ki beti' by India's then-Prime Minister, Atal Bihari Vajpayee. Not only this, she was also appointed as the Vice-chancellor of Sports University, which the Delhi government established. In February 2024, Karnam Malleswari was bestowed with the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Sportstar Aces Awards 2024, where she talked about her Olympic success. Opening up about the same, she admitted that being India's first female Olympic medalist feels special. She said:
"It is a great feeling [to be the first Indian woman to win an Olympic medal]. I feel proud that I was the first one to overcome the hurdles that women athletes face."
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One of the most important parts of Karnam Malleswari's journey is that her husband, Rajesh Tyagi, who was also a weightlifter, just like her. They used to train together and had the same dream of going to the Olympics and winning a medal for India. However, there came a point when Rajesh realised Karnam had more potential than him and could fulfil their Olympic dream. It was when he decided to sacrifice his own career with a smile and dedicate himself fully to supporting and finding the best ways to strengthen his wife's chances of winning an Olympic medal.
Karnam Malleswari once talked about her husband, Rajesh Tyagi, at an award ceremony and admitted that he sacrificed his own career to support her. While lauding her husband, she also added that Rajesh was a national-level weightlifter, but even then, he left it all for her Olympic dream. She said:
"Before my marriage, it was my mother who supported me. And after marriage, my husband took over that role. He helped me through all the obstacles I faced in my career. What is truly great about his support is that he was a national-level weightlifter. But he understood that I had more potential and talent. So, he compromised his career and told me that he would take care of everything so that I can go onto the next level and achieve my dreams."
Karnam Malleswari and Rajesh Tyagi got married in 1997, and it was in 2001 when they became parents to a son. The Olympic medalist retired from weightlifting after she couldn't score at the 2004 Olympics and is now currently working as a Chief General Manager at the Food Corporation of India.
We hope more partners follow in the footsteps of Karnam Malleswari's husband, Rajesh Tyagi. What are your thoughts on his sacrifice and her Olympic win? Let us know.
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