Mirabai Chanu finished fourth in women’s 49kg at Asian Games 2022

Mirabai Chanu finished fourth in the women’s 49kg weightlifting at the 2022 Asian Games in Hangzhou. She totaled 191kg across the snatch and clean and jerk and missed a podium place.

With just a few hours left until the Asian Games 2026 in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, athletes are putting the finishing touches on their preparations and Chanu remains a focus for Indian supporters. She won India’s first gold in the women’s 49kg at the Glasgow Commonwealth Games and joined the select list of athletes who have won three consecutive gold medals across different editions of the Commonwealth Games. The Tokyo silver medallist has struggled at times because injuries affected her form.

In the snatch at Hangzhou Chanu successfully lifted 83kg. That was her only legal snatch, as she failed to lift 86kg on her second and third attempts. The 83kg effort was described as not up to her standards.

In the clean and jerk she registered a successful lift of 108kg. Her other two clean and jerk attempts at 117kg were unsuccessful. Those results left her with a total of 191kg for the competition.

North Korea’s Ri Song-gum won gold with a then-world-record total of 216kg. China’s Jiang Huihua, a four-time world champion, took silver with 213kg. Thailand’s Thanyathon Sukcharoen claimed bronze with a total of 199kg.

Chanu entered the Asian Games 2022 as one of India’s top medal contenders and was a four-time Commonwealth Games medallist, but she missed a podium finish by the slimmest of margins in Hangzhou. The combination of an under-par snatch and failed heavier clean and jerk attempts decided her placing.

With the Asian Games 2026 beginning in Aichi-Nagoya, the Tokyo silver medallist will face competition from lifters representing North Korea, China and hosts Japan; the coverage noted that Chanu has the skill and courage to secure the top spot on the podium.