‘Pressure is completely gone’: Mirabai Chanu finally gets elusive Asian Games medal

Japan had already given Mirabai Chanu an Olympic silver and on Wednesday the land of rising sun delivered another precious medal, the elusive Asian Games medal she had chased for 12 years, lifting the pressure off the star Indian weightlifter and leaving her feeling very light.

Chanu totalled 198kg (87kg+110kg) in the women's 49kg category to claim a silver, which is India's first Asian Games weightlifting medal since Karnam Malleswari's silver in 1998.

The Manipuri had won an Olympic silver in Tokyo in 2021, bettering Malleswari's bronze from the 2000 Sydney Games, and returned to Japan five years later to add the one major medal missing from her collection.

"Finally, I have got the medal that I wanted, which I have been chasing for 12 years. I am feeling very light now because the pressure is completely gone from me. This is my dream Asian Games medal. I feel my life is complete now," Chanu said after her event.

"I won a silver medal in Tokyo (Olympics) and now I have a silver medal at the Asian Games in Japan. I've been dreaming of winning an Asian Games medal since I stepped into the Olympics.

"I always ask myself, what is happening to me during or before every Asian Games? But this time, I tried my best. I came here with the resolve that no matter what happens, I will win the medal," added the 32-year-old.

She said the Asian Games medal is equivalent to an Olympic medal since the top weightlifters in the world are mostly from Asia.

Asked what is special on Wednesday, she said, "Everything is special. Olympic rings, hairband, nails."

She said she did not want to win a medal without giving her best, so she went for 111kg in clean and jerk even though a lesser load would have still handed her a silver.

"I wanted to lift more than 110kg (in clean and jerk). I didn't know how much the Indonesian (bronze medallist) would lift. I knew the gold is not there for me. But I just wanted to give my best performance. I didn't want to win a medal by lifting less.

There will be no 49kg category in the 2028 Olympics, instead there will be 53kg, and Chanu said that she has not decided in detail regarding her preparations in the higher weight class.

"We have not decided finally, but we will try. Qualifying starts from December but we have not yet decided whether we will start or not (from December). But for now, I will enjoy."

Asked further about competing in 53kg, she said, "I have been playing in 49kg. When I am in training, I maintain 1.5kg more, say 50.5kg. Maintaining that is difficult for us. I have to do weight training. I have to take a lot of load. That's it.

"For now, there will be no problem. LA will start from 53kg. In will be my last 49kg. So, on one hand, it is very good."

She said to reach 53kg, she does not have to gain weight suddenly, but will have to get the muscles ready first.

"If we gain weight suddenly, our performance can also go down. Strength will also not be that much. We are thinking of increasing the weight along with strength.

"To bring more strength to the muscles, we will maintain it (weight). I will keep track of what I want to eat, what I want to change in my diet. If I get 53kg at once, my strength can go down. So, I have to control my weight along with my strength."

Asked how much effort she had to put in for this medal, Chanu said, "After the Commonwealth Games, I had very little time. At that time, I had to control my weight in 48kg. It was very difficult for me to control and maintain my weight.

"It was very important for me to maintain my weight in 49 kg. But the Asian Games were very important for me. I had been preparing for this for years. So, I have maintained everything."

She admitted that she felt pressure at times but the confidence and self belief in her helped her in overcoming it.

"Everyone expects a medal from me. So, I also think that 'If I make a mistake, what will I do?' So, I feel pressure. On the other hand, I am proud of my strength. I have confidence and belief in myself."

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by The Bridge Desk. It is published from a syndicated feed)