Mirabai Chanu bagged India’s first gold medal of the 2017 World Weightlifting Championship after she lifted a total of 194 kg in the 48kg category at Anaheim, USA, on Wednesday.
The 23-year-old lifted 85 kg in Snatch and 109kg in clean and jerk for a total of 194kg to end India’s 22 year wait for a World Championship gold. Sydney Olympics bronze medallist Karnam Malleswari is the only other lifter from India to have won the gold medal in the World Championship. She had achieved that feat in the 1994 and 1995 edition in the 54kg category.
In Anaheim, Chanu was always considered a medal contender but it looked like the Indian may have to settle for silver with Thailand’s Thunya Sukcharoen needed just match her 109 kg attempt in clean and jerk to clinch the top spot.
But Sukcharoen failed and took the silver with a total of 193 kg while Colombia’s Ana Iris Segura bagged the bronze with a total lift of 182 kg.
Chanu had earlier looked in trouble when she failed to lift 85 kg in her second snatch attempt but made no mistake in the third to stay in the second spot. She then turned things around in clean and jerk lifting 103 kg, 107 kg and 109 kg in her three attempts.
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