Weightlifter Achinta Sheuli caught entering women's hostel at night, expelled from Paris Olympics preparatory camp

Weightlifter Achinta Sheuli has been ousted from the Paris Olympics preparatory camp after he was caught entering a women's hostel at NIS Patiala.

Sheuli was found to have violated the code of conduct on Thursday night. The security personnel made a video of the youngster, while he was trying to sneak into the girl's hostel.

Sports Authority of India (SAI) did not constitute an investigation panel, due to the presence of video evidence.

“The video was sent to NIS Patiala ED Vineet Kumar and the SAI headquarters in New Delhi, and IWLF was asked to remove Achinta from the camp,” a SAI source said.

“Obviously, such indiscipline will not be tolerated. Achinta was asked to leave the camp immediately,” an Indian Weightlifting Federation (IWLF) official told PTI on condition of anonymity.

Achinta Sheuli, who competes in the 73kg weight class, left the camp on Friday.

At 2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games, Sheuli set Games record by lifting a total of 313kg (143kg in the snatch and 170kg in Clean and Jerk) to secure a gold medal.

This is not the first instance when an Indian athlete breached the disciplinary norms. Previously, CWG and Youth Olympics champion Jeremy Lalrinnunga was expelled from the national camp.

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Achinta Sheuli's participation doubtful for Paris Olympics

Following the incident, Achinta Sheuli is not expected to be part of the Indian contingent for the 2024 Paris Olympics. The weightlifter was set to participate in the IWF World Cup in Phuket, which was a mandatory qualification event for the Olympics.

Currently placed 27th in the Olympic qualification rankings, Sheuli was likely to make a cut through the continental quota.

He faced injury concerns, particularly a hamstring pull forcing him to pull out of the World Weightlifting Championships in December 2022. Further, he could not make the cut to the Asian Games roster last year due to sub-par performances.

“It is such a pity because he had actually started getting back on track after his injury,” the source added.

Tokyo Olympics silver medalist Mirabai Chanu (49kg) and CWG silver medalist Bindyarani Devi are in contention for the Paris Olympics. Chanu is set to return after recovering from a hip tendinitis injury sustained last year.