Mirabai Chanu won her first medal at the Asian Games, ending India’s 28-year drought
Mirabai Chanu finally won the Asian Games medal that had eluded her throughout her career, taking silver in the women’s 49kg category in Nagoya on Wednesday. Her total of 198kg also ended India’s 28-year wait for a weightlifting medal at the continental showpiece.
North Korea’s Ri Song Gum won her third straight gold at the Asian Games with a total of 215kg, while Indonesia’s Luluk Diana Tri Wijayana won bronze with 191kg. Chanu’s silver was India’s first weightlifting medal at the Asian Games since Karnam Malleswari’s silver in Bangkok in 1998.
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For Chana, the result came after three very different Asian Games experiences. She finished ninth in Incheon in 2014, missed Jakarta in 2018 with a back injury and was fourth in Hangzhou in 2023 after her challenge was cut short by a clean-line injury.
She entered the competition with some momentum after winning her third Commonwealth Games gold in Glasgow earlier this year. There, Chanu lifted 85kg in the snatch and 105kg in the throw, but the Asian Games brought a stronger field led by defending champion and world champion Ri.
HOW CHANU MOVED WITH MEDALS
Chanu stayed in the fight despite the jerks, completing all three attempts to finish at 87kg. Ri moved further ahead with a 94kg lift, leaving Chanu in need of a strong clean and jerk sequence to stay in the medal positions.
The Indian opened with 107 kg and then successfully lifted 111 kg on her second attempt. This took her to a total of 198kg and gave her a considerable cushion over Wijayana, who failed to complete her 107kg clean attempt.
Ri was active in another group. She lifted 116kg before attempting 121kg, setting a world record and finishing with 215kg. Chanu was unable to challenge for the gold, but her two successful clean and jerk lifts had already done enough to secure the silver.
The medal was particularly significant given how close it had been three years earlier. Chanu finished fourth in Hangzhou at 191kg after an injury on the clean and jerk, narrowly missing the podium.
28 YEARS AFTER MALLESWARI
The previous Asian Games weightlifting medal came from Malleswari in 1998 when she won silver in Bangkok. No Indian weightlifter has stood on the podium at the Continental Games since then, so Chanu’s result ended a gap of 28 years.
It also completes an unusual omission from Chanu’s medal collection. She won Olympic, World Championship and Commonwealth Games medals, including three consecutive Commonwealth Games golds, but the Asian Games podium remained out of reach.
That changed in Nagoya. Chan’s total of 198kg was not enough to equal Ri’s record of 215kg, but it was enough to put India back on the Asian Games weightlifting podium and the 31-year-old won her first medal at the event.
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Issued by:
Debodinna Chakraborty
Published on:
23 Sep 2026 11:57 IST