At the Asian Weightlifting Championships 2023 in Jinju, South Korea, from May 3 to 13, Tokyo 2020 medalist Mirabai Chanu will captain a six-person Indian team in her first international competition of the year.
The continental championship will be the second event for Indian weightlifters to qualify for the Olympic Games in Paris in 2024, according to Olympics.com. The weightlifters competing in these qualifying events will be able to improve their Olympic Qualification Ranking (OQR) based on their combined results (snatch, clean, and jerk).
After the qualification process for the Paris Olympics concludes on April 28, 2024, the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) will release the list of qualified athletes.
In her most recent competition, Mirabai Chanu placed second in the women’s 49kg category at the World Weightlifting Championships 2022 in Colombia in December. To treat her shoulder and back ailments, Chanu attended a five-month rehabilitation plan at NIS Patiala. She will keep competing in the 49-kg division.
Mirabai Chanu has won gold at the Commonwealth Games, a world championship, and an Olympic silver medal, but her best continental finish to date has been bronze at the 2020 Asian Championships in Tashkent.
For the Asian championships, injured athletes Jeremy Lalrinnunga (men’s 67 kg) and Achinta Sheuli (men’s 73 kg) will also be competing again. Since hurting his lower back and thigh muscles during his gold-winning performance at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, Lalrinnunga has not participated in any competitive events.
Prior to the commencement of his competition at the global weightlifting championships in December, Sheuli, however, experienced a hamstring pull. In the 73 kg category, he is also a Commonwealth Games champion. Bindyarani Devi, who took home silver in the women’s 55kg division at the 2022 Commonwealth Games, will keep competing in this division. The previous Asian Weightlifting Championships were held in Bahrain’s Manama last year. There, Harshada Garud took home the bronze medal in the women’s 45kg division. India received just one medal overall.
Asian Weightlifting Championships 2023: India squad
Women: Mirabai Chanu (49kg), Bindyarani Devi (55kg)
Men: Shubham Todkar (61kg), Jeremy Lalrinnunga (67kg), Achinta Sheuli (73kg), Narayana Ajith (73kg).