Mirabai Chanu will be headlining India’s 15-member weightlifting contingent in the upcoming Commonwealth Games 2022 in Birmingham. The event is scheduled to be held between July 28 and August 8.
Saikhom Mirabai Chanu (49kg), the star of India’s 15-person weightlifting team, would be under intense pressure from the entire country to perform well at the next Commonwealth Games 2022. The Tokyo Olympics silver medalist and defending champion in her division will compete in Birmingham from July 28 to August 8; Chanu will be closely watched in light of her Tokyo 2020 performance. During a media encounter, Chanu revealed that she has focused primarily on her snatch because it is her “weakness” since her performance in Tokyo.
“The instruction has been constant. Since the Olympics, I have primarily focused on improving my technique. Since coming back, my snatch, which is a weakness, has gotten most of my attention. Therefore, I put a lot of effort into that. If my technique is sound, I can deliver better performances. I have been primarily concentrating on my technique, so there hasn’t been much change in my training “She said.
Chanu only competed in one event following the Olympics, winning gold in the upper 55kg division at the Singapore International Weightlifting competition in February of this year. Chanu’s snatch weakness was evident in Tokyo as her best lift in the higher division in Singapore International was 86kg.
She reported that she still hasn’t “touched” the 90 kg snatch barrier but that her intention is to “do it in the World Championships.” “I’m trying, but I haven’t touched it yet. In CWG, I have no idea what I’ll do or hear from my sir “she declared. “I want to do that at the World Championships,” she said.
In the women’s 49kg division, Chanu has a personal best of 207 kg (88 kg + 119 kg), which is 39 kg higher than the second-highest lifter in her CWG division. Stella Kingsley (Nigeria), the weightlifter’s closest competitor, has a personal best of 168 kg (72 kg + 96 kg). To earn her third CWG medal, she will need to do two legal lifts, one in each of the snatch and clean and jerk. Since her silver at the Tokyo Olympics, weightlifting as a sport has also garnered more interest in India. With a smile, she stated that she likes it when people ask her about the sport or when children recognize her.
She remarked, “Before the Olympics, nobody knew about weightlifting, and because I’m from Manipur, people didn’t know much about the Northeast too. After the Olympics, I have been treated nicely and have also received attention. “But after the Olympics, people recognise me and also ask about weightlifting, which I like. Small kids recognise me, which I really like, and it makes me glad that I accomplished something for India, my family, and my state. That has changed, I like it, and it is a significant thing for me.”
