West Bengal emerged as one of the standout teams at the recently concluded KSA Indian Kettlebell Sports Championship held from January 31 to February 1 in Rohtak, Haryana.
Competing in association with international bodies International Kettlebell Marathon Federation (IKMF) and International Gira Sports Federation (IGSF), the seven-member contingent returned with nine gold medals and two silver medals, a performance that firmly reasserts Bengal’s growing strength in the sport.
The lineup included Samrat Sen, Saikat Roy, Tirthankar Ghosh, Rifat Khan, Santlal Bhuiya, Shanawaz Gul Khan and team captain as well as IGSF Indian representative Danish Naushad. Together they delivered what can only be described as a breakthrough outing for the state.
The championship saw participation from 13 states. Bengal finished behind Delhi, Haryana and Uttarakhand on the medal table, a result that Naushad believes marks a turning point for the sport in the region. He said the team’s showing feels like “just the new beginning of the kettlebell sport evolution in India” and that Bengal is now “a crucial part of it.”
Among the standout stories was the mother-and-son duo of veteran athlete Rifat Khan and her son, Shahnawaz Gul Khan.
Rifat secured silver in the 8kg snatch with 200 reps and went on to claim gold in the 12kg jerk half marathon, missing her Candidate for Master of Sport rank by just 12 reps. Shahnawaz matched his mother’s strong outing by taking silver in the snatch and gold in the 20kg half marathon after hitting a personal record.
Another major highlight came from Santlal Bhuiya, one of Naushad’s students and the lightest male competitor at the entire event with a bodyweight of under 60 kg. He lifted double 20kg kettlebells for 50 reps to win gold and later delivered an exceptional 538-rep half marathon with 16 kg to claim another gold.
Veteran lifter Samrat Sen added to the tally with gold in his half marathon set, marking a triumphant return after competing for the state for nearly a decade. His students, Saikat Roy and Tirthankar Ghosh, also secured gold in their respective categories.
Naushad, who juggled roles as athlete, coach, organiser and representative, described the event as demanding but immensely rewarding. “There was a lot of pressure on me and my team because I also had to manage arrangements, promotion and my own performance,” he said. “But when the competition turned out to be a successful one, I can say it was very worth giving my time for.”
This was the second edition of the championship and saw a sharp rise in participation, which Naushad believes signals positive momentum for the sport. He credited the newly formed KSA for bringing athletes together and rebuilding unity in the community. “Everyone is happy. They did not expect this event to be so good and it turned out to be more for them,” he said.
With the team now setting its sights on the IKMF World Championship in the USA in May, Bengal’s kettlebell athletes appear ready to carry this surge of confidence to the global stage.