Aqilah Completes Brilliant Weightlifting Edition

PETALING JAYA: Siti Aqilah Farhana Draman ensured the national weightlifting camp closed the 2026 Commonwealth Games with history after becoming the first Malaysian female weightlifter to win a silver medal at the Commonwealth Games.

Aqilah managed to deliver a silver sheen for the country after finishing the +86 kilogram (kg) category in second place on her debut in Glasgow 2026.

The 20-year-old athlete from Kuala Nerus, Terengganu, accumulated a total lift of 253kg through 113kg in the snatch and 140kg in the clean and jerk, thus renewing her own national record while also achieving a personal best.

More impressively, Aqilah admitted that she did not set a high target before the competition, as she only wanted to focus on each lift without thinking about her position or the capabilities of other challengers.

“I really did not expect to win. If there was a target, maybe it was just bronze, but I did not expect to get silver.

“The difference with gold was not too far. Insya-Allah, in four years I want to hunt for the gold medal,” she said.

The gold medal was won by England’s Emily Campbell, who renewed the Games record with a total lift of 278kg, while Canada’s representative Etta Mae Love took home bronze after recording a total of 250kg.

The success also saw Aqilah improve on the best achievement of a Malaysian female weightlifter at the Commonwealth Games, surpassing the two bronze medals won by Raihan Yusoff in the 53kg category at New Delhi 2010 and Irene Jane Henry in the 48kg category at Glasgow 2014.

Meanwhile, the President of the Malaysian Weightlifting Association (PABM), Datuk Ayub Rahmat, described the success in Glasgow as proof that local coaches have the ability to produce world-class athletes when given the trust, space and proper support.

“This success is clear evidence that local coaches have the capability to produce world-class athletes when given the space, trust and appropriate support,” he said.

Utusan Malaysia