Asian Weightlifting Championships: Mirabai Chanu clinches bronze in 49kg with world record lift in 'clean and jerk'

Indian weightlifter Mirabai Chanu has claimed the bronze medal in the 49kg category in the ongoing Asian Weightlifting Championships with an aggregate lift of 205kg. The Indian shattered the record in clean and jerk with a 119kg lift, but narrowly missed out on a Tokyo Olympics berth.

China’s Hou Zhihui claimed the top-prize after a fierce competition, with her accumulating a total of 213 overall (96kg in snatch and 118kg on clean and jerk), while her compatriot Jiang Huihua finished behind her with a score of 207kg (89kg in snatch and 118kg in clean and jerk).

Mirabai Chanu's record lift helped her take pole position in the clean and jerk section, but she slipped to third after falling behind in the snatch.

Congrats @mirabai_chanu for your new world record in clean and jerk 119kg first indian women weightlifter creat history #mirabaichanuworldrecord

— sathish sivalingam weightlifter (@imsathisholy) April 17, 2021

Mirabai Chanu entered the limelight after claiming a silver medal in the 48kg category at the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, after which she never looked back. Even though she qualified for the 2016 Rio Olympics, her trip was cut short as she failed to lift the weight in any of her three attempts in the clean and jerk section.

But she came back to secure a top-podium finish at the 2017 World Championships in Anaheim. She followed that success up with another gold medal at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games.

She had looked on course to her to grab a maiden Olympic medal in Tokyo, which would be India’s second at the Games in weightlifting after Karnam Malleswari’s historic feat at the 2000 edition in Sydney. But with her missing out narrowly in the ongoing event, her chances of reaching the Olympics now look slim.