Asian Games 2023: Mirabai Chanu to only attend weigh-in at World Weightlifting Championships

Mirabai Chanu is focussed on the elusive Asian Games medal and is going to give the World Weightlifting Championships a miss. However, considering the compulsory nature of the Worlds, she will mark her attendance with the weigh-in but not lift any weights. World Weightlifting Championships, scheduled to take place in Riyadh from September 4, is a qualifying event for the Paris Olympics next year. Asian Games are due to take place in Hangzhou, China just 20 days later. “There is very less time between the Asian Games and the World Championships. Since there is compulsory participation at the World Championships, we have decided that Mirabai only travel to Riyadh and give the body weight. “She will complete all the mandatory protocols like give the dope test, if required. But she will not lift any weight. She is only going there to participate,” head coach Vijay Sharma told news agency PTI. Chanu, placed in Group D at the World Weightlifting Championships based on her entry weight of 60kg, will travel to tick the boxes necessary to compete at the Paris Olympics. As per the qualification requirement for Summer Olympics, lifters are needed to compete at the Worlds and World Cup. Even with Asian Games just days apart from World Weightlifting Championships, things are not going to be easy for the lifter who competes in the 49kg weight class. “We are aiming to cross the 90kg mark (in snatch) at the Asian Games. It’s been a while since we have been trying to get over that line. We have been focussing on Mira’s snatch here in training,” Sharma said. At the Asian Championships in May, Chanu’s last tournament, she had to withdraw with a dodgy hip. “We have to keep in mind Mira’s body as well. She is ageing, the chances of injuries increase with age. So we have to be careful with the workload. “Currently, her body is well. Small niggles here and there keep happening but nothing serious,” Sharma said. Besides the World Weightlifting Championships this year and 2024 World Cup, a lifter is also required to participate in three of the following events – the 2022 World Championships, the 2023 Continental Championships, the 2023 Grand Prix 1, the 2023 Grand Prix II and the 2024 Continental Championships. The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) will publish the Olympic Qualification Ranking (OQR) of each weight category at the end of the qualification period. The best three performances at the qualifying events will be taken into consideration for final assessment.