Saikhom Mirabai Chanu ( Meitei pronunciation: /sái.kʰom mi.ra.bái cə.nu/; born 8 August, 1994) is an Indian

weightlifter Olympic weightlifting, or Olympic-style weightlifting (officially named Weightlifting), is a sport in which athletes compete in lifting a barbell loaded with weight plates from the ground to overhead, with each athlete trying to successfully lif ...

. 27-year-old Mirabai Chanu lifted a total of 201 kg to win the Gold Medal which was also India's third medal after at the ongoing CWG 2022. She won the silver medal at the

2020 Tokyo Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the List of Olympic Games h ...

in Women's 49 kg category. Mirabai Chanu has won the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

and multiple medals at the

Commonwealth Games The Commonwealth Games, often referred to as the Friendly Games or simply the Comm Games, are a quadrennial international multi-sport event among athletes from the Commonwealth of Nations. The event was first held in 1930, and, with the exce ...

. She was awarded the

Padma Shri Padma Shri ( IAST: ''padma śrī''), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is conf ...

by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO: ; often abbreviated as GoI), known as the Union Government or Central Government but often simply as the Centre, is the national government of the Republic of India, a federal democracy located in South Asia, ...

for her contributions to the sport. She was awarded the sporting honour Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna by the

in 2018. Chanu won the silver medal in the women's 48 kg weight class at the 2014 Commonwealth Games,

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated popul ...

; she went on to break the games record en route to the gold medal at the 2018 edition of the event held in

Gold Coast Gold Coast may refer to: Places Africa * Gold Coast (region), in West Africa, which was made up of the following colonies, before being established as the independent nation of Ghana: ** Portuguese Gold Coast (Portuguese, 1482–1642) ** Dutch G ...

. Prior to the 2020 Summer Olympics, her biggest achievement came in 2017, when she won the gold medal at

World Weightlifting Championships The World Weightlifting Championships is an event organised by International Weightlifting Federation (IWF). The first competition, held in March 1891, was won by Edward Lawrence Levy of England. Athletes compete in a total of 20 weight categorie ...

held in Anaheim,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. She is the current

world record holder In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

in Clean & Jerk in the 49 kg category.

Early life and background

Saikhom Mirabai Chanu was born on 8 August 1994 in Nongpok Kakching about 30 km away from

Imphal Imphal ( Meitei pronunciation: /im.pʰal/; English pronunciation: ) is the capital city of the Indian state of Manipur. The metropolitan centre of the city contains the ruins of Kangla Palace (also known as Kangla Fort), the royal seat of the f ...

city,

Manipur Manipur () ( mni, Kangleipak) is a state in Northeast India, with the city of Imphal as its capital. It is bounded by the Indian states of Nagaland to the north, Mizoram to the south and Assam to the west. It also borders two regions of ...

to a Meitei family, a warrior clan of that region. Chanu identified herself as a follower of

Sanamahism () , native_name_lang = mni , image = The Symbol of Sanamahi.svg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = The Symbol of Sanamahism (Source: Wakoklon Heelel Thilen Salai Amailon Pukok Puya) , ...

but also stated she worships Hindu deities as well. Her family identified her strength when she was just 12. She could easily carry a huge bundle of firewood home when her elder brother found it hard to even pick it up. Mirabai trained at the Sports Academy in Manipur. She hitched rides with truck drivers carrying sand. After winning the Olympic medal, she invited the truck drivers to offer her gratitude and touched their feet as a sign of respect.

Career

Chanu's first major breakthrough came at the Glasgow edition of the Commonwealth Games; she won the silver medal in the 48 kg weight category.

2016 Rio Olympics

Chanu qualified for the

2016 Rio Olympics ) , nations = 207 (including IOA and EOR teams) , athletes = 11,238 , events = 306 in 28 sports (41 disciplines) , opening = 5 August 2016 , closing = 21 August 2016 , opened_by = Vice President Michel Temer , cauldron = Vanderlei Cordeiro de ...

in the women's 48 kg category. However, she failed to complete the event, owing to no successful lifts in any of her three attempts in the clean & jerk section.

2017–2021

In 2017, she won the gold medal in the Women's 48 kg category by lifting a competition record 194 kg in total (85 kg snatch and 109 kg clean & jerk) in the 2017 World Weightlifting Championships held at

Anaheim, California Anaheim ( ) is a city in northern Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a population of 346,824, making it the most populous city in Orange County, the 10th-most ...

, United States. Chanu lifted a total of 196 kg, 86 kg in Snatch and 110 kg in Clean and Jerk to win the first gold medal for India in the 2018 Commonwealth Games. En route to the medal, she broke the games record for her weight category; the effort also marked her personal best performance. She missed out on a bronze medal in 49 kg category at

2019 Asian Weightlifting Championships The 2019 Asian Weightlifting Championships were held in Ningbo, China from 20 to 28 April 2019. It was the 48th men's and 29th women's championship. Medal summary Men Women Medal table Ranking by Big (Total result) medals Ranking by al ...

with a total lift of 199 kg, her personal best, as her Snatch weight was lower than the third place athlete, both of whom had identical totals. At the 2019 World Weightlifting Championships, Mirabai lifted a total of 201 kg (87 kg Snatch and 114 kg Clean & Jerk) to finish fourth. This personal best total also created a new national record in the 49 kg category. She broke her personal record again four months later when she lifted 203 kg (88 kg in Snatch and 115 kg in Clean & Jerk,) in the 49 kg category to win the gold medal at the 2020 Senior National Weightlifting Championships. In April 2021, she won the bronze medal at the

2020 Asian Weightlifting Championships The 2020 Asian Weightlifting Championships were held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, from 16 to 25 April 2021. Originally the event was scheduled to take place from 18 to 25 April 2020 but was postponed to 16 to 25 April 2021 because of the COVID-19 pand ...

in Tashkent where she lifted 86 kg in snatch and then created the

world record A world record is usually the best global and most important performance that is ever recorded and officially verified in a specific skill, sport, or other kind of activity. The book ''Guinness World Records'' and other world records organization ...

by lifting 119 kg in the clean and jerk, for a total of 205 kg. In June 2021, Chanu became the only Indian woman weightlifter to qualify for the

2020 Summer Olympics The , officially the and also known as , was an international multi-sport event held from 23 July to 8 August 2021 in Tokyo, Japan, with some preliminary events that began on 21 July. Tokyo was selected as the host city during the 1 ...

by securing second position on the Absolute Rankings for 49 kg category.

2020 Tokyo Olympics

Chanu won the silver medal in 49 kg division at the

in Tokyo with a total lift of 202 kg, becoming the first Indian weightlifter to win silver at the Olympics, the second Indian weightlifter after

Karnam Malleswari Karnam Malleswari (born 1 June 1975) is a retired Indian weightlifter. She is the first Indian woman to win a medal at the Olympics in 2000. In 1994, she received the Arjuna Award and in 1999, she received the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, ...

to win an Olympic medal, and the second Indian woman after P. V. Sindhu to win an Olympic silver. A new

Olympic record Olympic records are the best performances in a specific event in that event's history in either the Summer Olympic Games or the Winter Olympic Games, including: * Archery (list) * Alpine skiing (records recognized only by FIS) * Athletics (list) ...

was registered by Chanu with a successful lift of 115 kg in clean and jerk. Her win ensured India its first medal at the Tokyo Olympics. Aftermath of Tokyo Olympic

Chief Minister N. Biren Singh announced an award of 1 crore for her. Indian Railway Minister

Ashwini Vaishnaw Ashwini Vaishnaw (born 18 July 1970) is an Indian politician and former IAS officer currently serving as the Minister of Railways, Communications and Electronics & Information Technology in Government of India, since 8 July 2021. He is a membe ...

announced an award of ₹2 crore, a promotion and more for her.

2022 Birmingham Commonwealth Games

Chanu won gold medal in 49 kg category at Commonwealth Games 2022 held at Birmingham, England. She lifted a total of 201 kg in snatch and clean and jerk.

Major results

Awards

National

* Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna, highest sporting honor of India (2018) *

, the fourth highest civilian award of India (2018)

Rewards

For winning the silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics - * rupees from BYJU'S * from the Government of India. * from the

Government of Manipur The Government of Manipur ( mni, Manipur Leingak; /mə.ni.pur lə́i.ŋak/), also known as the State Government of Manipur, or locally as State Government, is the supreme governing authority of the Indian state of Manipur and its 16 districts. ...

, and appointment as Additional Superintendent of Police (Sports) in the Manipur State Police. * from the

Ministry of Railways (India) The Ministry of Railways is a ministry in the Government of India, responsible for the country's rail transport. The ministry operates the statutory body Indian Railways, an organisation that operates as a monopoly in rail transport and is h ...

and promotion in the Northeast Frontier Railway. * from the

Board of Control for Cricket in India The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the national governing body for cricket in India. Its headquarters are situated at Cricket centre, Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The BCCI is the richest governing body of cricket in the world ...

* from the Indian Olympic Association. * Other rewards ** from the Government of Manipur for the gold medal in the 2017 World Weightlifting Championships. ** from the Government of Manipur for qualifying for the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics. ** from the Government of Manipur for participating in the 2020 Tokyo Summer Olympics.

In popular culture

Mei Iklaba Thamoi (play)

''Mei Iklaba Thamoi'' is a

Meitei language Meitei (), also known as Manipuri (, ), is a Tibeto-Burman language of north-eastern India. It is spoken by around 1.8 million people, predominantly in the state of Manipur, but also by smaller communities in the rest of the country and in p ...

Shumang Kumhei Shumang Kumhei ( mni, /sū.máŋ kūm-hə́i/), also known as Shumang Leela (), is a Meitei traditional form of theatre, usually performed in Manipur, North East India. The theatre is arranged in the form of open air from four sides. The roles are ...

play based on the life of Mirabai Chanu, directed by

Shougrakpam Hemanta Shougrakpam Hemanta (born 1969) is an Indian comedian, actor, writer and director, who has worked in various Shumang Kumhei plays and Manipuri films. He is well known for his role of ''Oja Tolhan'' in ''Eegi Mahao'' and his portrayal of the titu ...

, released on 19 September 2021.

Upcoming film

A biographical Manipuri feature film on Mirabai Chanu was also announced by Seuti Films. The movie will be directed by OC Meira and screenplay by Manaobi MM.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Chanu, Saikhom Mirabai Living people Meitei people Indian female weightlifters 1994 births Commonwealth Games silver medallists for India Sportswomen from Manipur Weightlifters at the 2014 Commonwealth Games Weightlifters at the 2014 Asian Games Weightlifters at the 2016 Summer Olympics Olympic weightlifters of India Commonwealth Games medallists in weightlifting People from Imphal 21st-century Indian women 21st-century Indian people World Weightlifting Championships medalists Weightlifters from Manipur Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports Weightlifters at the 2018 Commonwealth Games Weightlifters at the 2022 Commonwealth Games Commonwealth Games gold medallists for India Recipients of the Khel Ratna Award Asian Games competitors for India South Asian Games medalists in weightlifting Weightlifters at the 2020 Summer Olympics Olympic silver medalists for India People from Manipur Olympic medalists in weightlifting Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics 20th-century Indian women