Mirabai Chanu wins gold medal in first competition post lower-back injury

After being ruled out for the majority of the 2018 season with injury concerns, Indian weightlifter Mirabai Chanu bagged a gold medal in her first appearance at an international event after the break. Chanu lifted a total of 192 kg in the 48 kg category for women to finish on top of the podium at the EGAT Cup in Thailand on Thursday.

Mirabai, who won multiple medals at the 2018 Gold Coast Commonwealth Games, made a strong comeback from a lower-back injury as she lifted 82kg in snatch and 110kg in clean and jerk events to finish on top. Chanu’s win in Thailand was in a silver level Olympic qualifying event which will later benefit her when the final rankings for Tokyo 2020 cut will be decided.

The 24-year-old Manipur native earlier missed out on the world championships last year, due to her injury which had also forced her out of the Asian Games in Jakarta. During the Gold Coast CWG, Chanu lifted 86kg in snatch and 110kg in clean and jerk, a Games record and also her personal best.