NEW DELHI: Mirabai Chanu's quest for a second consecutive Olympic medal was always going to be a challenging endeavor, given her age and injury-plagued physique. Nevertheless, it was not an impossible feat.
However, the renowned Indian lifter did not do herself any favors by delivering a performance that was significantly below her best in Paris, leaving her with no choice but to endure the pain of finishing fourth.
Despite being the most accomplished weightlifter in the nation, Chanu struggled with three of her six lifts, two of which occurred in the clean and jerk section, which is considered her strong suit.
Chanu had positioned herself in third place after successfully lifting a national record-equalling 88kg in the snatch at the South Paris Arena.
Given that her clean and jerk personal best was second only to China's Hou Zhihui and considerably higher than Romania's Mihaela Cambei and Thailand's Surodchana Khambao, it was anticipated that Chanu would overcome the deficit and secure the silver once more.
National coach Vijay Sharma has consistently stated that a total of 205kg-206kg was required to win gold, and they were training to achieve that. His calculations were accurate, but Chanu's execution fell short, reported PTI.
To put things in perspective, if Chanu had lifted her personal best in clean and jerk, she could have been an Olympic champion today.
Chanu had entered the Tokyo Games with great confidence after having shattered the clean and jerk world record, but in her last tournament before the Paris edition, she lifted a total of 184kg (81kg+103kg), her lowest in years.
This Olympic cycle has been plagued by injuries for Chanu, who turned 30 just a day after the competition in Paris. She sustained a wrist injury during the 2023 World Championships, where she still managed to claim a silver medal.
Her next appearance was at the 2023 Asian Championships, where she finished fifth. Chanu then returned to action at the Asian Games, only to be hampered by hip tendonitis.
The strain of lifting twice her body weight and the injuries have taken their toll on Chanu. As the sole hope of Indian weightlifting for years, her journey highlights a troubling reality: the absence of a deserving successor.
This is a matter that the Indian Weightlifting Federation must seriously contemplate.
