Champion weightlifter Mirabai Chanu, who won India’s first gold medal in the ongoing Commonwealth Games, hails from Manipur.
Enroute to the gold medal, Chanu also broke three Games records in the ‘snatch’ section, the ‘clean and jerk’ and the overall games record.
The 23-year-old won her first medal in the 2014 Commonwealth Games, the silver in the women’s 48-kg weight class.
She also became the first Indian in two decades to clinch a gold medal at the World Weightlifting Championship in Anaheim. This was also her previous best, where she lifted a total of 194kg (85kg in snatch and 109kg in clean and jerk).
Following that, Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh felicitated her by presenting her with a cheque of Rs. 20 lakhs. In 2018, she was awarded with the Padma Shri.
After her silver medal win, Chanu failed at the 2016 Rio Olympics despite qualifying for it.
“I was really low after the Olympics. It took me a lot of time to get over the disappointment. I even thought of giving up the sport and stop training. The comments in social media, the criticism against my coach really hurt me,” she said in an interview.
While speaking to The Hindu earlier, Chanu said “I never thought I would win a gold, but was determined to go back with a medal. I will go step by step with the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games next year and the Olympics in 2020. Now, I am hopeful of winning a medal in the Olympics.”
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