"The Punjabi 'thapi' was a tribute to Sidhu Moose Wala."
Indian weightlifter Vikas Thakur honoured Sidhu Moose Wala after winning a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games.
Thakur took part in the men’s 96kg event.
In the Snatch category, he lifted 149kg swiftly. His second attempt saw him lift 153kg. Thakur improved even more by lifting a massive 155kg in his third attempt.
In the Clean and Jerk category, Thakur successfully lifted 191kg.
His total of 346kg was enough for him to finish second and win the silver medal.
But his celebration attracted a lot of attention as he paid tribute to Sidhu Moose Wala by doing a ‘thigh-five’.
Speaking about the celebration, Thakur said:
“The Punjabi ‘thapi’ (thigh-five) was a tribute to Sidhu Moose Wala.”
The rapper was shot dead on May 29, 2022, and Vikas Thakur admitted that he was so devastated, that he did not eat for two days.
He said: “I did not eat for two days (after his death).”
Thakur went on to say:
“I’ve never met him but his songs will remain with me forever.
“Even before coming to the competition, I was listening to his numbers. I will always be a big fan of his.
“He always would say ‘you have to give it your all to achieve something’ on the thigh five.
“He will always remain my all-time favourite singer.
“His songs are always on my phone. Happy or sad, he (his numbers) always keeps me going.”
“I was thinking about that while doing the lifts.”
Congratulations to our dear Ludhianvi Vikas Thakur for winning silver in Men's 96 Kg category for Weightlifting.#CommonwealthGames2022 #Weightlifting #Punjab #VikasThakur #CWG2022India #CWG2022 pic.twitter.com/cR5ozrcyme
— Ankush Saini ????? ???? ?????? ???? ????? ????? (@ank1saini) August 3, 2022
Thakur said that as a child, he was “very naughty” and was put into different sports to keep him engaged.
He recalled: “I would finish my homework early and to ensure that I don’t get into bad company, my parents put me into sport.
“I tried athletics, boxing and finally weightlifting at the Ludhiana Club under CWG 1990 medallist Parvesh Chander Sharma.”
Thakur was inspired by K Ravi Kumar, who hit headlines at the 2010 Commonwealth Games in Delhi with his record-breaking lift.
He added: “Though I started out in 2002, Ravi Kumar’s performance in Delhi inspired us all.
“It brought on that passion and there was no looking back.”
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