Purnima Pandey is an Indian professional athlete who represents the country in the sport of weightlifting. Pandey became the first Indian woman from the 2021 Commonwealth Weighlifting Championships edition, to qualify directly for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Purnima Pandey was born on October 16, 1999, in Varanasi city, Uttar Pradesh. Her mother, Vimla Pandey was an erstwhile badminton player of her time. The registered height and weight of the athlete are 166 cm and 95 kg, respectively. She is trained under the leadership of veteran Indian Weighlifting coach and athlete Vijay Sharma, who is also currently employed by the government of Uttar Pradesh.
During the 2016 Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships in Penang, Malaysia, she secured a sixth-rank finish in the +75kg category. Her final score was 188 with combined totals from snatch and clean&jerk divisions.
She achieved a sixth-place finish in the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games in Australia.
Purnima won the 2021 edition of the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championship that happened in Tashkent, by lifting 229 kg (102 kg + 127 kg) and earning a spot on the Commonwealth Games team for the following year.
Eight national records were set by Purnima, including two in the snatch division and three each in the clean and jerk and total categories. Pandey won the gold medal in the +87kg women’s category.
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The bronze medalist in the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships set three national records in the snatch category and one each in the clean and jerk category. The Uttar Pradesh, young weightlifter would be hoping for a successful stint at the upcoming Commonwealth games.
