India, July 25 -- India opened its medal account at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow with Jhandu Kumar winning bronze in the men's heavyweight para powerlifting event on Friday.

The 28-year-old scored 130.9 points after successfully lifting 181kg and 190kg. He failed in his final attempt at 196kg, which would have been a Games record. Nigeria's Idris Riluwan won gold with 132.8 points, while England's Matthew Harding claimed silver with 131 points.

Kumar's medal marks a remarkable achievement for the para athlete, who contracted polio at the age of five and grew up in Harnaut village in Bihar's Nalanda district. He helped his parents sell vegetables to support the family and later took up weight training before transitioning to sh...