Powerlifter-turned-weightlifter Sybil Sohail became the first Pakistani woman to win the gold medal at the Asian Weightlifting Masters Championship in Doha, Qatar.
This was also the Commonwealth Powerlifting Champion Sybil's international debut at a weightlifting event.
The 31-year-old athlete has always dreamed of raising the Pakistani flag at the Asian championship and it was an aim she had set for herself after she became the Asian Commonwealth Powerlifting and Commonwealth Powerlifting champion last year.
"I aim to make my country proud, make my family proud, we have sacrificed a lot for the sport, but I need to make sure that all of that effort and dedication pays off," Sybil told this correspondent from Doha.
She was competing in the 59kg category and she lifted a total of 95kg to get her gold. She lifted 40kg in snatch while she had a more solid performance in clean and jerk with a 55kg finish.
Sybil is the eldest of the powerlifting and weightlifting sisters, Twinkle Sohail, Veronika Sohail, and Mariam Sohail.
She and her sisters created a unique record at the Commonwealth Powerlifting Championships last year when they collectively grabbed 15 gold medals.
She alone won six out of those 15.
The sisters belong to the Christian community in Lahore and they have been a shining example for the nation that rarely sees any athletes coming forward from minority groups.
However, Sybil credits Twinkle for introducing her to the sport and thanks her coach Rashed Malik for guiding all four of them and training them in Lahore at their club which is at the Punjab University grounds.
"Sybil has won so many accolades for Pakistan in powerlifting, but she had never competed in weightlifting, and for her personally it was her debut at an international weightlifting event as well, it was a dream for her because she was always charmed with weightlifting," said Twinkle who also coached Sybil often while training together told this correspondent.
"This is huge, she has won her gold medal on her debut."
'Bitter experiences fuel our ambition to win medals'
Twinkle shared a bitter experience of Sybil's from 2016, which resulted in her missing out on the trials for the national weightlifting squad.
"She had a rough experience in 2016, there were trials for the team that was meant to compete in the South Asian Games weightlifting. But Sybil couldn't go to compete in them because she had an exam that same day. She knew if she competed in them she would have secured a spot.
"So since 2016, this has been a wish of hers that she finally fulfilled now. It took her nine years to achieve what she really wanted."
Twinkle added that Sybil's feat brings an immense sense of pride to her and her family. Twinkle says that she understands Sybil's emotions completely.
"I started sports in my family, if I reflect on my own experience, there was a time when I was selected to go to Nepal for a competition in 2019. Unfortunately, at the time when Imran Khan's government was at the helm of affairs, I found out that the government only had the funds for only five players, my name was in sixth place on that list, and I had a silver medal to my name, but I couldn't compete in that event.
"So we fuel our ambition with these disappointments. These feelings are really beyond explanation but they are strong and we use them to drive us to achieve bigger goals and more medals.
"Hopefully I would make my name in weightlifting too," concluded Twinkle.
Lifting weights is good for women
Sybil's achievements and her dedication to powerlifting and weightlifting shows that she is changing the perception of society -- one day and one medal at a time.
"It is actually a misconception that weightlifting is bad for women, and it disrupts the hormones and creates complications for us when it comes to having children and starting families," Sybil explained. "It is actually healthy to build the muscles and we need these exercises and weight training to stay strong.
"There are so many Pakistani powerlifters and weightlifters I know who were very active in the sport and then went on to have children."
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