The Indian five-athlete team at the World Weightlifting Championships is set to be spearheaded by Mirabai Chanu. The championships, which are hosted in Riyadh this year, are qualifiers for the 2024 Paris Olympics. Chanu is an Olympics silver medalist and will compete in the women’s 49 kg category.
Also Read: Jeremy Lalrinnunga wins silver at Asian Weightlifting C’ship
Chanu competed in this year’s Asian Championships, where she finished in sixth place. This was an impressive feat considering she had just returned from a major injury. The 28-year-old went through five months of rehabilitation following a hip operation late last year. She will be looking to build on her performance at the Asian Championships. Alongside her is Bindyarani Devi, who is a former Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships Gold Medalist, and will participate in the women’s 55 kg event.
Chanu has had an illustrious career in weightlifting so far, winning Olympic silver, and gold at the commonwealth games and the world weightlifting championships.
Men’s team includes Achinta Sheuli, Lalrinnunga To Miss Riyadh Games And Olympics
The men’s contingent comprises Achinta Sheuli, Shubham Todkar, and Narayana Ajith. Ajith is the national men’s champion while Todkar is a gold medalist at the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships. Sheuli and Ajith are set to compete in the men’s 73 kg while Todkar is competing in the men’s 61 kg event.
Also Read: Bindyarani Devi wins silver at Asian Weightlifting Championships
The World Weightlifting Championships are to be followed by the Asian Games, where it is likely that the same team barring Todkar will represent India and will be looking to put in a strong performance on the international stage at the Hangzhou-hosted event.
One big miss for the Indian team is Youth Olympic Games Champion Jeremy Lalrinnunga, who misses out due to a back injury. This means that the promising young star is not able to qualify for the Paris Games as participation in the Riyadh Weightlifting Championships is mandatory for the Olympics. He is currently undergoing rehabilitation in Pune.
