Guwahati: The daughter of a tea seller from Assam, Panchami Sonowal, won the weightlifting gold medal in the 4th Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG) in Bhopal.
The youngest daughter of Luhit Sonowal and Budheswari Sonowal, Panchami is from Jiadhol Chariali in the Dhemaji district of Assam. Moreover, she currently holds the 49 kilogramme women’s juvenile weightlifting national record.
Panchami Sonowal earned a bronze and a gold medal at the Junior and Youth Weightlifting National Championships in Tamil Nadu last month. She has now maintained her supremacy at the Khelo India Youth Games.
Panchami made a third attempt at the KIYG After failing to achieve the anticipated heights in her first two efforts in Guwahati and Pune. She had to skip the Haryana competition in 2022 as well because of her board examinations, but she hopes to be able to take part in the competition the following year.
The young weightlifter claims that both in triumph and in defeat, her parents are immensely proud of her. They have always made an effort to give her whatever she needs to keep up her athletic pursuits. She claimed that when her mother learned of her most recent medal-winning achievement, she became tearful.
It should be noted that Panchami is the youngest of four siblings. Santosh Sonowal, her brother, drives an auto-rickshaw while all of her sisters have all been married off. She also expressed her desire to develop Santosh’s son into a future sportsperson.
She claimed that every time she returns home, Santosh’s nephew, an eight-year-old boy, expresses interest in her training. Panchami stated, “I want to make sure he accomplishes a lot.
Her friends and elders encouraged her to start weightlifting when she was young. She first encountered Dharmendra, a weightlifting coach, when she was 11 years old.
Manipuri sensation and Olympic medal winner Saikhom Mirabai Chanu was cited by Panchami as someone she admires and who has influenced her. She wants to speak with her in person because she saw her when Mirabai won the gold in the competition the year before.