Saikhom Mirabai Chanu has made one medal her immediate priority: an Asian Games podium finish.
The Tokyo Olympics silver medallist will head to Aichi-Nagoya with her focus firmly on ending a wait that has stretched through two Asian Games appearances.
After injuries disrupted her campaigns in Jakarta in 2018 and Hangzhou in 2023, staying fit has become central to her preparations for the September 19-October 4 Games.
“The real test lies ahead,” Mirabai told SAI Media after winning her third consecutive Commonwealth Games gold in Glasgow.
The 32-year-old is already back at work. After her Commonwealth Games triumph, she did not return home to Manipur, instead heading straight back to training in Modinagar. Even in Glasgow, she found a gym to continue training after the competition venue was dismantled.
‘No going home until Asian Games medal’: Mirabai Chanu
“I have set myself a challenge, no going home till I win a medal at the Asian Games,” she said.
Her preparations have also continued under the guidance of coach Vijay Sharma and strength and conditioning specialist Dr Aaron Horschig, with whom she has worked since November 2020. The duo hold weekly video calls to review training, recovery and fitness.
Mirabai believes the Asian Games will provide a far greater test than the Commonwealth Games, where she won the 48 kg title with a 190 kg total, setting Games records in the snatch, clean and jerk and overall total.
“To be honest, the competition in the Commonwealth Games was not tough for me. I did not have to put in a lot of effort at Glasgow. The real test lies ahead,” she said.
Her biggest challenge in Japan is likely to come from Asia’s leading weightlifters. Mirabai expects strong competition from China, North Korea, Japan and Thailand, with the latter particularly familiar after Surodchana Khambao edged her by one kilogram at the Paris Olympics.
Mirabai’s personal best stands at 205kg, and she is eager to see how close she can get to that mark in Nagoya.
“I want to see how far I can go in Japan. The Asian Games have been the toughest for me. You will probably see the ‘Olympics’ at the Asian Games this time because the strongest lifters in our weight category are from Asia,” she said.
Injury-hit Asian Games campaigns in the past
The Asian Games medal remains the one major gap in an otherwise decorated career. Mirabai finished fourth in Hangzhou after a hip and thigh injury affected her snatch, while a back injury kept her out of the 2018 Jakarta Games.
For now, however, the weightlifter is resisting the temptation to look too far ahead. The 2028 Los Angeles Olympics remain on the horizon, but decisions over moving up to the 53kg category and beginning the qualification process will come after the Asian Games.
“In Los Angeles, the weight class will be 53 kgs and I will need to bulk up. That should not be a problem but everything will depend on the performance at Nagoya,” she said.
Mirabai will lead India’s five-member weightlifting squad at the Asian Games, with the competition scheduled from September 22 to 28 at the Tokai Citizen Gymnasium in Aichi, Nagoya.
For the three-time Olympian, though, the equation is simple: Nagoya first, Los Angeles later.