President, PM laud weightlifter Butt on winning gold medal

By News Desk

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif on Thursday appreciated Pakistani weightlifter Nooh Dastagir Butt for winning a gold medal for Pakistan in the Commonwealth Games.

In a statement, the President expressed confidence that Butt would continue to bring laurels to the country. He emphasised the need for encouragement of youth in the field of sports.

On his Twitter handle, the Prime Minister posted “ Well done, Butt saab,” and also tagged a tweet with pictures of the Pakistani weightlifter.

Weightlifter Butt claimed the first gold medal for Pakistan in the Commonwealth Games 2022 in men’s 109+ kg at NEC, Birmingham on Wednesday.

The 24-year-old set a new Games record of 173kg in the snatch portion of the event after lifting 170kg in his first attempt.

In Clean and Jerk, he lifted 232kg, totaling 405kg to claim gold for Pakistan.

New Zealand’s David Andrew got silver by lifting 394kg, whereas India’s Singh Gurdeep managed to win bronze by lifting an overall 390kg.

Earlier, in the 2018 Commonwealth Games, Butt had got a bronze medal in the 105+kg category. In the same games, Talha Talib also bagged bronze in the 62kg category.

In 2006, Shujauddin Malik won the only gold for Pakistan in the 85kg category in CWG’s weightlifting event.