Lifting A Nation

Olympic silver medallist Chanu opens up to Vishal Menon on why winning an Asian Games medal would mean the world to her, her love for Lata Mangeshkar songs, and the plans to open an academy for weightlifters in Manipur

- Vishal Menon

Standing 4 feet, 11 inches tall, Saikhom Mirabai Chanu is a colossus. The undisputed poster girl of weightlifting, and an embodiment of grit and humility, she has lifted the hopes of a nation at the Olympic stage.

Her strength goes far beyond the kilograms lifted and the medals won—to the manner in which she has shattered gender stereotypes, overcome injuries, and inspired a generation of upcoming athletes.

On a sweltering afternoon, I meet Chanu at the Weightlifting Warriors academy in Sadabad Jakhaiva, a village in Modinagar, Uttar Pradesh, just an hour's drive from New Delhi.

The academy's polished floors gleam under the lights. The barbells are neatly arranged in clockwork symmetry. This is the Manipur weightlifter's abode till September, where she will be training hard for the Commonwealth Games qualification round.

"My immediate target is to participate in the Commonwealth Games in Glasgow and the Asian Games in Nagoya, Japan, both of which are scheduled next year," she says. "Based on my performance, I will take a call on the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics."

Her thoughtful gaze drifts past me to rest on the portrait of her silver medal-winning feat at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics embossed on the walls of the academy.

"I want to be the catalyst of change," she proclaims.

Her diminutive frame belies her strength.

After Tokyo, she was the toast of the nation—becoming only the second Indian weightlifter to win a medal at the Olympics—after Karnam Malleswari, who clinched bronze at the 2000 Sydney Olympics.