Saikhom Mirabai Chanu, one of India’s top players at the Olympics, narrowly missed out on a medal at the Paris 2024 Olympics, finishing fourth in the women’s 49 kg weightlifting category. Chanu ended with a total of 199 kg (88 kg snatch + 111 kg clean and jerk), just shy of a podium finish.
Her performance included an 85 kg lift in the snatch, followed by a successful 88 kg on her third attempt after a failed second try. In the clean and jerk, she initially struggled with 111 kg but succeeded on her second attempt, though she failed in her final attempt of 114 kg.
The gold medal went to China’s Hou Zhihui with a combined lift of 206 kg (89 kg snatch + 117 kg clean and jerk). Romania’s Mihaela Cambei claimed silver with a total of 205 kg (93 kg snatch + 112 kg clean and jerk), while Thailand’s Surodchana Khambao took bronze with 200 kg (88 kg snatch + 112 kg clean and jerk).
Having previously won a silver medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, Chanu entered the Paris 2024 competition with high hopes for another podium finish. Despite missing out on a medal at last year’s Asian Games due to injury, she remained India’s sole weightlifting medal hopeful in Paris.
In Tokyo, Chanu opened India’s medal tally with a total lift of 202 kg in the women’s 49 kg category, and the following year, she secured gold at the Commonwealth Games with a lift of 201 kg.