The name Khushboo Kumari may not be known to many, but her journey is quite inspirational when heard. The 21-year-old Indian weightlifter bagged a gold medal at the Khelo India University Games (KIUG) 2025 in Bikaner, Rajasthan. In the event, she represented Magadh University and participated in the women’s 77kg weightlifting event. But Khushboo’s chance to represent her country and become a sportsperson was not an easy one.
Hailing from a village named Dharampur in Bihar, it was two years ago during a protest where she was blocking the motorcade transporting Bihar State Sports Authority (BSSA) Director General Raveendran Sankaran in a narrow street of Begusarai. Catching his attention there, she met Sankaran there and was promised her a chance in return and to her disbelief, it was then at the Khelo India games that she got the opportunity.
Post her win at the Khelo India Games 2025, Khushboo dedicated her victory to Raveendran and said, “Whatever success I am experiencing today is because of Raveendran sir. If I had not met him, I would not have a gold medal today.”
Khushboo’s journey in sports
Right from a very young age, sports were always an interest for Khushboo. During her school years, she used to play kabaddi, yet despite the hard work she did, she was not selected for the team and failed to get any recognition from her school kabaddi team.
Not just the school, but she faced challenges in her home, also. Belonging to a modest family, Khushboo was not allowed to participate in a sport like weightlifting, as it included training and lifting weights with males. But not soon enough after she met Sankaran and got her big break in 2023. She and one of her friends, named Shalini Kumari, were called to Patna for a talent identification camp, which was headed by Kunjarani Devi, a decorated weightlifter.
In the next two years, Khushboo got training at the BSSA facilities in Rajgir and Patna. Following that, she started participating in tournaments, and it was in 2024 that she made it to the top six at the All India Inter University Athletics Championship held in December. Her victory also qualified her for the KIUG event.
Khushboo’s participation in the Khelo India University Games 2025 was a brilliant one, which got her the gold medal, but the start wasn’t easy. Entering the 86kg event, she was nervous and incidentally dropped and tripped over the bar. But her performance in the 98kg category was quite a comeback. She lifted the weight quite confidently in the clean and jerk.
The weightlifter aims to bring a medal for India from the international events and tournaments.
