Mirabai Chanu trades pizza for discipline with an eye on Asian Games, CWG

RAIPUR: Mirabai Chanu famously celebrated her Olympic silver in Tokyo with a pizza.

These days, however, she needs to stay as far from it as possible as she prepares for the Asian Games to be held later this year. Not just pizza, but Manipuri local cuisine is also off her menu as she must maintain a strict diet plan for competing in the 48kg category.

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“For the 48kg category, I have to keep my weight around 49-49.5kg during training, which requires even more discipline than before,” said Chanu on the sidelines of the Khelo India Tribal Games opening ceremony here on Wednesday.





“What we eat and how much we eat — everything has to be monitored. We have to choose the right balance of protein and carbohydrates and reduce our portions accordingly.”

Although she won the Olympic medal in the 49kg category, she has been competing in the 48kg category since last year and will continue to do so even in the Asian Championships and Commonwealth Games to be held in Glasgow from July 23 to Aug 2. But she will then have to shift to 49kg for the Asian Games in Aichi-Nagoya, Japan, from Sept 19 to Oct 4.

It’s going to be challenging but she is taking confidence from her record-setting show at the nationals where she lifted a total of 205kg.

“I had previously lifted a total of 205kg. After many years, making this comeback gives me a lot of self-belief and confidence that I can deliver the same performance in upcoming competitions,” said the lifter from Manipur.

Her first test now will be the Asian Championships to be held in Ahmedabad, which was rescheduled to May following the recent crisis in West Asia and she believes she can continue the same performance there.

But it’s not always easy. Especially missing the podium at the Paris Olympics by just two kilograms was heartbreaking. But support from her mother, her long-time coach Vijay Sharma and the rest of the coaching team has made things easier for her.

“Still there are days when training doesn’t go well. In those moments, I talk to myself. If today was good, how can I make it even better? If it was bad, I try to understand what went wrong and tell myself I’ll be ready again tomorrow. That’s how I maintain my mindset,” said Chanu, who trains at Weightlifting Warriors Academy in Modi Nagar, UP, these days and also mentors as many as 50 young kids.

However, despite the Paris heartbreak, she doesn’t brood over it and still believes competing at the Games remains a big achievement, too. This is also why she feels initiatives like the Khelo India Tribal Games are so important.

“There are many talented players in villages who want to come up and do something for the country, their state and their families, but they face several challenges. There is lack of equipment, family issues and limited opportunities. Because of this, many dreams remain unfulfilled,” said Chanu.

“But with platforms like the Khelo India Tribal Games, things are changing. It gives them motivation and belief that they too can succeed.”

Only time will tell whether anyone from here will someday make it big like Chanu but for now one can only celebrate their feats as they hope to catch the attention and get selected for further training.