All 38 districts win at least one medal underlines the long-term impact of the Games for Tamil Nadu
Table toppers Chennai and second placed Chengalpattu signed off their CM Trophy 2024 campaign with a gold medal each on the final day on Thursday as the Games will be remembered for the spirited performance by Cerebral Palsy athletes, Olympians and Paralympians facing off with upcoming stars and festival of sports that hooked one and all over the last 20 days.
N Indhumathi of Chennai bagged the weightlifting college girls’ 76kg gold with a total lift of 170kg, beating Vellore's P Bhuvaneshwari by just one kg. R Priya of Chengalpattu bagged the college girls’ above 76kg gold with a total lift of 158kg.
Chennai expectedly topped the standing, winning 105 gold, 80 silver and 69 gold with only third-placed Coimbatore joining them in crossing the 100 medals mark.
Chengalpattu took the second spot in the medals tally due to their superior gold medal count at 31 along with 26 silver and 36 bronze medals. Coimbatore ended with 23 gold, 40 silver and 39 bronze medals.
Salem was the biggest mover on the medals tally from the last edition as they jumped to fourth spot from 19th in 2023, winning 21 gold, 12 silver and 23 bronze. Dindigul was the other big mover as they jumped from 17th spot to 6th with 16 gold, 7 silver and 11 bronze.
The 2024 CM Trophy is one of the largest grassroot initiatives and this edition has attracted over 33,000 participants from 38 districts and will compete across five categories – school, college students, public, government employees and differently-abled persons -- in 36 sports disciplines. Prior to the State meet, district level competitions were held across the State in which over 11 lakh players participated.
This was the first time that all the 38 participating districts found a spot on the medals tally with Nilgiris taking the last spot thanks to a bronze medal winning performance by A Nafila in the school girls' chess competition. More importantly, all 38 districts managed to win at least one gold medal in the Games.
But more than the medals, it was the passion and spirit of cerebral palsy athletes that mesmerized the spectators as they competed in football and athletics competitions.
This year also saw the addition of track cycling, para shot put, handball, chess, fencing, judo, gymnastics and squash to the Games program along with Esports as a demo sport, which attracted over 5000 competitors in eight categories.
The district and regional level competitions saw a 42% increase in participation while the CM Trophy overall saw an increase of 72% in total registrations.
However, the most important takeaway from the Games was the abundance of talent that was on display from across the State and the government would now chalk out a forward path for the school and college athletes through SDAT scholarships and CM Champions Foundation.
THE Results – Day 21
VENUE: Jawaharlal Nehru Indoor Stadium, Chennai
Sport -Weightlifting
Category/Event: College Girls 76kg
Gold: Indhumathi.N, Chennai (Snatch - 75, Clean & Jerk - 95, Total - 170); Silver: P Bhuvaneshwari, Vellore (Snatch - 74, Clean & Jerk - 95, Total 169); Bronze: K Subiksha, Coimbatore (Snatch - 75, Clean & Jerk - 90, Total – 165).
Category/Event: College Girls +76kg
Gold: R Priya, Chengalpattu (Snatch -75, C&J - 90, Total 165); Silver: S Pooja, Madurai (Snatch - 56, C&J -72, Total -128); Bronze: Sneha I.S, Chengalpattu (Snatch -56, C&J - 70, Total -126).
CM Trophy overall saw an increase of 72% in total registrations.
