Mirabai Chanu takes silver at the World Weightlifting Championships, defeating Olympic champion Hou Zhihua.
Mirabai lifted a total of 200 kg (87kg in snatch and 113kg in clean and jerk), while Zhihua lifted 198 kg. Meanwhile, China’s Jiang Huihua won gold with a combined weight of 206 kg.
Mirabai’s second World Championships medal, having previously won gold in 2017 with a lift of 194 kg (85 kg plus 109 kg).
Mirabai, the star Indian weightlifter who recently won gold at the Commonwealth Games 2022, got off to a slow start, lifting 85 kg in snatch. The 28-year-old failed her second attempt (87 kg) before successfully completing her third (87 kg). Mirabai then struggled in her second clean and jerk attempt, but she recovered in time to finish with a combined total of 113 kg and a clean and jerk match with Jiang.
Nina Sterckx of Belgium, a two-time European bronze medalist in 55kg, and Mihaela Cambei of Romania, a Romanian European bronze medalist, both failed in their second and third clean and jerk attempts.
Meanwhile, Olympic champion Hou Zhihua appeared to be struggling, lifting less than her world record personal best of 96 kg in snatch and national record personal best of 118 kg in clean and jerk. Surprisingly, Mirabai of India holds the world record at 119 kg).