Mirabai only two valid attempts, finishes sixth in Asian Championships
India’s star lifter Mirabai Chanu did not have a promising campaign at the Asian Championships due to a hip problem as she struggled in snatch and missed her last two attempts in clean and jerk to finish sixth here on Friday. The Tokyo Olympics silver medalist, competing in the 49kg category, managed 85kg in snatch and 109kg in clean and jerk for a total lift of 194kg, 13kg less than her personal best of 207kg. Mirabai has a personal best performance of 88 kg in snatch and 119 kg in clean and jerk. She was eliminated after only one attempt at the clean and jerk.
Japan’s Rira Suzuki, competing in the ‘B’ group, also lifted 194kg (83kg and 111kg) but she finished ahead of the Indian wrestler as she challenged before Mirabai. Chief coach Vijay Sharma told PTI, “Mira was having trouble in her left hip joint. If she continued to lift the weight, she could get hurt so we decided not to take the risk.” “Anyway, our aim was just to have competition here. We just wanted to get into the total weight category with a valid effort in the clean and jerk.” Mirabai started off with an easy 85kg lift in the snatch.
He then raised the weight to 88kg, which is his personal best. The Manipur lifter, however, failed in her next two attempts and had to be content with an 85kg effort in the snatch. Four lifters bettered Mirabai in the snatch and all lifted 90 kg or more. Mirabai herself is also attempting to lift 90kg in snatch from 2020 but head coach Vijay Sharma told PTI that she is not expected to attempt this much ahead of the World Championships here. Mirabai had last participated in the Asian Championships in 2021 and had returned with a world record (119kg) bronze medal in clean and jerk.
However, this time he lifted only 109 kg in the clean and jerk and then decided not to take his last two attempts for reasons unknown. Jiang Huihua of China won the gold medal with a total lift of 207 kg (94 kg and 113 kg). She attempted to break Mirabai’s world record of 119 kg by lifting 120 kg in her final attempt in the clean and jerk but failed.
Tokyo Olympic gold medalist Hou Zhihui finished second with a total lift of 204 kg (93 kg and 111 kg), while Thailand’s Serodchana Khambao won the bronze with a total lift of 200 kg (90 kg and 110 kg). The current championships are among the qualifying events for the 2024 Paris Olympics, where there will be 10 weightlifting events as against 14 for the Tokyo Games. However, it is an additional event and its inclusion in the Olympics is not mandatory.
As per the Olympic 2024 qualification rules, it is mandatory for a weightlifter to compete in the 2023 World Championships and 2024 World Cup. Apart from the above two events, lifters will have to compete in three events in the 2022 World Championships, 2023 Continental Championships, 2023 Grand Prix One, 2023 Grand Prix Two and 2024 Continental Championships. The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) will release the Olympic qualification ratings in each weight category at the end of the qualification period. The three best lifting efforts in the qualifying events will be considered for the final assessment.
