GLASGOW / VIZIANAGARAM — Sixteen years ago at the 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games, weightlifter Valluri Srinivasa Rao captured a bronze medal in the men's 56kg category, putting his native village of Kondavelagada in Andhra Pradesh's Vizianagaram district on the sporting map. Today, his 21-year-old son, Valluri Ajaya Babu, has taken that family legacy a notch higher on the global stage.
Competing in the men’s 79kg weightlifting event at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, Ajaya Babu clinched a silver medal after putting together a combined lift of 330kg. His campaign featured a Games record effort of 149kg in the snatch, followed by a clean and jerk lift of 181kg. In a thriller that went down to the final attempt, the Indian army lifter narrowly missed out on the gold medal by just 1kg to Malaysia’s Erry Hidayat Muhammad.
Born into the Sport
Ajaya’s journey into elite athletics was nurtured directly by his environment. While serving in the Indian Army and stationed in Bhopal, his father frequently took him along to weightlifting training sessions. Seeing his father compete at the top tier—and witnessing his 2010 Delhi CWG bronze victory firsthand—fueled young Ajaya’s ambition to represent India on the international podium.
Under his father’s guidance, Ajaya developed sharp technical foundations and rapid adaptability. He broke into national prominence by winning the Junior National Championship before being selected for the national coaching camp in Patiala in 2021. He further stamped his authority with a gold medal at the 2023 Khelo India Games in the 81kg junior category, followed by top honors at the 2023 National Junior Weightlifting Championships in Uttar Pradesh.
Resilience Through Injury
Ajaya’s path to Glasgow was not without hurdles. After a standout 2024 season where he secured double gold—winning both the Junior 79kg and Senior 81kg titles—at the Senior Commonwealth Championships in Fiji, he suffered a serious elbow injury at the Asian Championships in Uzbekistan.
Undeterred, Ajaya underwent grueling rehabilitation and bounced back at the 2025 Senior Commonwealth Championships in Ahmedabad. There, he set a tournament record total of 355kg (152kg snatch, 183kg clean and jerk) to take gold and punch his ticket to the 2026 Glasgow Games.
In Their Own Words
Speaking after his podium finish, Ajaya reflected on fulfilling a lifelong dream while keeping his eyes fixed on bigger goals ahead.
"My dream of winning a medal for the country at a prestigious sporting event, just like my father, has finally come true," Ajaya said. "Both my father and I hoped for gold, but the Malaysian lifter edged it by just one kilogram. Even so, winning silver is a huge achievement. My next target is an Asian Games medal, and beyond that, qualifying for the Olympics."
Ajaya credited his achievement to the joint support of the Indian Army, the Sports Authority of India (SAI), and the Andhra Pradesh government, emphasizing that sustained backing will allow more talented lifters from the state to shine internationally.
His father and early coach, Valluri Srinivasa Rao, shared his pride in his son’s mental toughness and work ethic:
"Ajaya has always been a quick learner. His technical competence and mental resilience helped him progress rapidly," Srinivasa Rao said. "He went to Glasgow with the sole objective of gold, but winning silver in his very first Commonwealth Games is a tremendous feat. I faced severe financial hardships during my career, but seeing both Ajaya and my younger son Akhil—who is also a Junior National Champion—succeed makes it all worthwhile."
