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'Mirabai Chanu didi ne saara 2016 ka gussa nikal diya aaj (She has left out all the anger from her 2016 Olympics)', says weightlifter Jeremy Lalrinnunga.
The young lifter did not move an inch in the weightlifting hall of Netaji Subhas National Institute of Sports, Patiala, for the entire two hours so as to not miss Mirabai Chanu’s historic lift to win a silver medal at the Olympics.
“We had everything planned. I had my training done, and had everything setup in the weightlifting hall. No one moved an inch throughout the competition. History ban rahi thi na (History was being made),” he says.
Mirabai Chanu lifted 202kg at the Tokyo Olympics to bag India's first medal. She also became the second lifter after Karnam Malleswari to win a medal at the Summer Games.
Jeremy says the entire Indian team had seen it coming. Mirabai had talked to them for an hour the day before her event. Instead of talking about her preparations, she shared her Olympic village experience.
Jeremy said;
“She talked with everyone here. Mira didi was just so happy to be there. You could see that shine on her face. It showed that she was just confident and would bring the medal home this time.”
Mirabai Chanu overcomes the snatch conundrum
Going into Tokyo, the big concern for the 4’11, 49kg weightlifter from Imphal was her "snatch" technique. Even at the Rio Olympics, she failed her first two lifts in the snatch, and just about managed to make a half-decent third attempt.
Jeremy says snatch is a more technical lift where the lifter needs to have good balance. For Mirabai, though, the flaw was her uneven body strength.
“She is very strong and there is no doubt about it. You cannot lift almost double your weight if you lack strength. But snatch is something else. Mira didi has more strength in her right side than left, which causes her weight to shift ahead during the lift,” Jeremy analyzes.
However, Mirabai Chanu has been working on her shortcomings since her disappointing return from Rio. She would ask her coach to write down every activity they did and give it to her at the end of the week. This was her way of reminding herself that she has to finish what she started.
“I have seen her train like anything. She worked very hard for it, especially the snatch technique. Before leaving for the US, she was lifting 87-89kg in snatch, which was a big improvement,” the 18-year-old weightlifter says.
Mirabai Chanu made a conservative first attempt at 84kg in the snatch at Olympics 2021. She took her time to lift the bar and succeeded comfortably. Her calmness and composure had much to do with her discussions with the coaches.
“They would talk about how to behave during lifts and how to stay calm. It was important to make the first attempt successful. It just set the tone for her podium finish,” Jeremy says.
In her second snatch attempt, Mirabai Chanu lifted 87kg successfully but fell short on the 89kg lift.
Mirabai Chanu’s redemption story
Her main challengers at the Olympics were China’s Hou Zhihui and USA’s Jourdan Delacruz. The Chinese lifter was in a class of her own as she lifted an Olympic record of 94 kg. Delacruz, on the other hand, was the third best with a lift of 87kg.
In the clean and jerk section, Mirabai Chanu started with a successful 110kg lift. When she started the clean and jerk, everything stopped in the hall, Jeremy says. The entire hall started praying to their respective gods.
“We were so nervous when she started the C&J event. [Jourdan] Delacruz was one of the medal contenders and she failed to make a single lift. [Hiromi] Miyake was a two-time Olympic medalist and she failed too. We just didn’t know what would happen,” he says.
But Mirabai Chanu knew exactly how to ace the C&J event, as done has done forever. Aged just 12, she lifted heavy logs of wood her older brother couldn't. Onlookers thought she had the strength to pursue weightlifting and thus began an incredible journey.
In Tokyo, she lifted 115 kg in the second attempt to confirm a silver. By her third attempt, Mirabai Chanu knew that she couldn't catch Chinese Zhihui in the gold medal race. She made a valiant effort to lift 117 kg, but couldn't succeed.
READ: Mirabai Chanu: The Wonder Woman of India
Jeremy, who missed out on Olympic qualification by a whisker, says this is a story that will be told for generations to come.
“You don’t see this happening everytime. It is a true redemption story. The next generation, including I, will work harder to achieve what Mirabai Chanu has done at the Olympics. I hope I can win India a gold medal in Paris,” Jeremy says confidently.
