Mirabai Chanu has unfinished business, says weightlifting coach Vijay Sharma

New Delhi, Sep 18
Veteran weightlifting coach Vijay Sharma believes that Mirabai Chanu still has a lot of weightlifting left in her and she must continue in competitive events.

Tokyo Olympics silver medallist, finished fourth at the Paris Olympics last month, missing a bronze medal by the barest of margins in women’s 49kg category.

"After Paris, we both discussed the future and decided that Mirabai must continue in competitive weightlifting,” said coach Sharma, Sharma, who has been working with Mirabai since 2014, to SAI Media on the sidelines of the ASMITA women’s weightlifting league in Modinagar.

“I have been working with Mirabai since 2014 and she is a very disciplined athlete. Mirabai finished fourth in Paris and we both feel that there is some more work to do," he said.

In a tight four-way competition at Paris, Mirabai was edged out by Thailand’s Surodchana Khambao of Thailand for the bronze medal. Khambao lifted a total of 200 kgs (88 snatch + 112 kg clean and jerk) to Mirabai’s 199 (88 + 111) kgs. China’s Hou Zhihui (206 kgs) defended her Tokyo Olympics gold while reigning European champion Mihaela Cambei of Romania (205 kgs) won the silver.

"I did my best and was happy to finish where I did after coming back from the injury,” Mirabai said, adding that she was somewhat handicapped by her menstrual cycle. “It is part of the game in women’s sport,” added Sharma.

The Hangzhou Asian Games held in 2023 turned out to be a nightmare for Mirabai. Within sniffing distance of a maiden Asian Games medal, the 29-year-old Manipuri lifter injured her hip and was out for five months. She made a splendid recovery and made it to Paris Olympics as a medal hope.

"We are looking at the next Commonwealth Games (in 2026) and the Asian Games (in 2026 Nagoya, Japan). An Asian Games medal is missing from her cabinet and we will give it all to secure that,” 54-year-old Sharma, who is developing a weightlifting facility in Modinagar, said.

Saying that league like ASMITA have created a good space for women to pursue a sports career, the Dronacharya-winning national coach sees bright future for women’s weightlifting but men need to raise their level

“In India, women’s weightlifting has a bright future. You have seen how Karnam Maleshwari won an Olympic medal in 2000, then Mirabai Chanu in 2020…I have been in weightlifting for 25 years, I can emphatically say that only women can win us Olympic medals in 2028 and 2032. Men have to really work very hard to come up to Olympic expectations," he concluded.