Team Kenya finally opened its medal account at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Sunday after 20-year-old weightlifting star Joshua Amunga Mboya produced a determined performance to claim bronze in the men’s 60kg event, Trybal News reports.
Competing at the SEC Armadillo, Amunga lifted a combined total of 260kg, made up of 115kg in the snatch and 145kg in the clean and jerk, to secure a place on the podium. His impressive effort earned Kenya its first medal of the Games as he comfortably finished ahead of Sri Lanka’s SDSS Wiriduwagle, who placed fourth with 244kg. Malaysia’s Mohamad Aniq Kasdan claimed gold with a Commonwealth Games record total of 273kg, while India’s Rishikanta Singh settled for silver.
The bronze medal marked the biggest achievement of Amunga’s young career, and the weightlifter admitted he was overwhelmed with emotion after standing on the podium.
“First of all, I am happy. It’s my first biggest medal, the first one I’ve got in the biggest competition,” Amunga said. “I have never been this happy before. Pressure was high because when the slot times came out, it wasn’t the usual list of competitors we normally face. It was tough, but I stayed focused and gave myself motivation preparing for this competition.”
Amunga’s manager, Pius Ochieng, praised the youngster after the event and expressed confidence that the Kenyan has the talent to achieve even greater success in the future.
The bronze medal became even more remarkable considering the setbacks Amunga endured before arriving in Glasgow. The 20-year-old revealed he had spent months recovering from a serious injury suffered earlier this year, which threatened to derail his entire 2026 season.
“My biggest challenge was staying consistent through my hardest times,” Amunga explained. “I was recovering from an injury just two months ago—I got injured around April, and it lasted about three months. I just recovered recently and started building up slowly, focusing on this moment. Everything—our strategies, everything—worked.”
Amunga also credited his long-time coach for helping him stay calm throughout his recovery and preparations. According to the Kenyan lifter, the guidance he received played a key role in keeping him focused on his long-term goals.
“My coach always tells me not to have pressure. Everything takes time, everything has its own time. Even when I have pressure, I try to cool down as my coach says and trust the process. Everything pays off,” Amunga said. “I met my coach when I was finishing primary school, around 2019 or 2020 in Thika. He introduced me to weightlifting. At first, weightlifting is tough, but the more you train, the more you build up, and it becomes easy once you love it.”
The medal winner admitted that weightlifting was never part of his childhood dreams. Like many young Kenyans, he initially imagined a future in football before discovering a passion for lifting weights.
“When I was a kid, playing football was all we knew—that was the only sport,” he laughed. “I never knew I would come to stand on an international stage, or win a big medal like this. It was never in my mind at all. But after I got into weightlifting and started progressing, I began to see a future in it. Everything I’ve been working on paid off today.”
Amunga’s breakthrough performance gives Team Kenya an early boost in Glasgow and officially launches the country’s medal campaign at the 2026 Commonwealth Games. His resilience, discipline and determination have also set a positive tone for the rest of the Kenyan delegation as they continue their pursuit of more podium finishes.
