Idris seals Nigeria’s third gold with heavyweight para powerlifting triumph in Glasgow

Riluwan Idris powered to men’s heavyweight para powerlifting gold to deliver Team Nigeria’s third title of the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games with a winning lift of 208kg on Friday.

Competing at just 86kg body weight, Idris amassed 132.8 points to top a fiercely contested event and finish narrowly ahead of England’s Matthew Harding, who secured silver with a 199kg effort worth 131.0 points.

Malaysia’s Nicodemus Moses completed the podium in Glasgow, taking bronze with a total of 120.3 points in the men’s heavyweight para powerlifting category.

Nigerian para powerlifters dominate opening day

Idris’ success capped a dominant opening session for Nigeria in the powerlifting events, with the country’s athletes also sweeping the top two places in the women’s Heavyweight Powerlifting.

Folashade Oluwafemiayo claimed gold in that competition, producing a record-breaking performance to set a new World Record on her way to the title.

Her team-mate Rita Ferdinand ensured a Nigerian one-two, also surpassing the previous global mark to earn silver while joining Oluwafemiayo in rewriting the World Record.

The combined achievements of Idris, Oluwafemiayo and Ferdinand mean Team Nigeria finished Day One of the Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games with six medals already secured.

Their early haul underlines Nigeria’s continued strength in para powerlifting and sets a positive tone for the rest of the Games as competition intensifies across events in Glasgow.