CWG 2022: Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu seals first gold for India

Indian weightlifter Mirabai Chanu has won India’s first gold medal at this year’s Commonwealth Games in Birmingham. She won the gold in the 49kg clean and jerk event. Chanu lifted a total of 201kg to give India their third medal at the games. 

Chanu, who had won the gold in 2018, not only defended her title successfully by lifting 201kgs (88kg in snatch and 113kg in clean and jerk) but set a Games record. 

Her efforts have secured India’s third medal of the day – all three in weightlifting after Sanket Sargar had won silver and Gururaj Poojary had claimed bronze in their respective events.

This is Chanu’s first significant accomplishment following her Olympic achievements in 2017. Like many of her other well-known Olympic medal winners, the weightlifter, 27, has become rather reticent since her defeat in Tokyo.

Since the Games in August of last year, Chanu had only participated in one competition, the Singapore International in February, where she won the 55kg category by lifting 191kg. After that, she relocated to St. Louis, Missouri, where she worked with Dr. Aaron Horschig, her longtime strength and conditioning coach, to give both sides of her shoulder, which is frequently in the spotlight, additional power.