Bikaner, Nov 26 (IANS) Representing Berhampur University, Rinki Nayak won a silver medal at the Khelo India University Games Rajasthan 2025.

The Khelo India University Games Rajasthan 2025 on Tuesday was more than a podium finish; it was the culmination of a four-year battle marked by loss, grief and unwavering resilience.

Representing Berhampur University in her maiden KIUG appearance, the 23-year-old lifted a total of 149kg (63kg Snatch; 86kg Clean & Jerk) to claim silver in the women’s 48kg category, finishing behind Shivaji University’s Kajol Magadev Sargar (158kg) and ahead of Chandigarh University’s Rani Nayak (148kg) held at the Indoor Hall of Maharaja Ganga Singh University here in Bikaner.

Rinki’s competitive journey has included a gold medal in the ASMITA league for women weightlifters. ASMITA (Achieving Sports Milestone by Inspiring Women Through Action) is part of Khelo India’s mission to elevate women’s sports in India.

The achievement weighed far more than her competition total. On July 24, 2020, returning home from training, Rinki’s life changed in an instant when she found that her father, Niladri Nayak, had taken his own life.

The weight of family pressures had become unbearable for him, and among those pressures was his unwavering support for Rinki’s dream to make a name in sports. Niladri had stood by her from the very beginning, cheering her on through school athletics and later when she transitioned into weightlifting.

The two years that followed were the hardest she had ever faced. Rinki slipped into depression, struggled to process her grief, and continued training despite her mother’s strong disapproval of her pursuing sport. Still, she held on to her father’s belief in her and to the small circle of friends, coaches and well-wishers who refused to let her give up.

For Rinki, the KIUG Rajasthan silver comes on the back of a gold in the ASMITA Weightlifting league, earlier this year. The 2020 tragedy almost derailed her career for a couple of years, but the motivation from friends and coaches helped her regain her focus on the sport.

Cut off from her family, with her mother even blocking her calls, Rinki, the eldest of four siblings, hasn’t returned home in the past two years and has instead shifted her focus entirely to the sport. She began with a few tournaments, but it took time to regain her focus. She now credits the Odisha government’s support for bringing her career back on track, as she doesn’t have to worry about her food, accommodation, training, or nutritional needs. Rinki trains at the Biju Patnaik Weightlifting Hall in Bhubaneswar.

“This was my first Khelo India University Games, and winning the silver medal was special here. The focus was obviously on the gold medal, but the silver medal means I will have to get back and work more on my shortcomings. It hasn’t been an easy journey for me, but I want to thank the government for the support over the years,” an emotional Rinki told SAI Media.

Elaborating on her journey, Rinki, who hails from Berhampur, said, “I started in athletics from school, before my teacher asked me to switch to weightlifting. My father supported me in sports but somewhere my mother was worried, and she never approved her daughter to be an athlete.”

“Gradually things started getting worse at home, and as my dad was working in a private company in Visakhapatnam, I never had direct family support. During lockdown, when he returned, things turned worse, and ultimately it was too much for him to sustain to the family pressure. I was training some 3km away from our place during that period, and on July 24, after returning from training, I found that he was no more,” said Rinki, with tears rolling down as she recalled the fateful event.

“For some time, I wasn’t able to gather myself, every time the scenes flashed before my eyes, I was troubled mentally, and ultimately was down with depression. It was difficult to return to normal, but my friends and coaches stood beside me throughout that phase,” she added.

–IANS

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