Mirabai Chanu, the Warrior Woman of India

The name Mirabai Chanu has been imprinted on every person’s mind and will continue to be the same for years to come. She had successfully opened the gates to a plethora of achievements for India at the Tokyo Olympics.

Mirabai Chanu bags silver at the Tokyo Olympics

Mirabai Chanu had successfully grabbed the silver medal in the 49 kg weightlifting at the Olympics. With her tremendous win, Mirabai Chanu had put an end to India’s 21-year long wait for a medal in weightlifting. Karnam Malleswari was the first Indian to win a bronze medal in this category at the Sydney Olympics in 2000.

After reviving from her setback in the 2016 Rio Olympics, Mirabai Chanu had lifted a total of 202kg at the Tokyo Olympics. The 26-year-old had lifted 87 kg in the final for the snatch event and 115 kg in the clean jerk event, respectively. With these power moves, she had rightfully become the first Indian woman to win a silver medal in weightlifting at the Olympics.

Mirabai Chanu’s rewards after securing the silver

• The government of Manipur had announced a cash reward of Rs 1 crore.
• The government of Manipur had declared her as the Additional Superintendent of Police (Sports) in the Manipur State Police.
• The Government of India had announced a reward of Rs 50 lakh.
• The Ministry of Railways (India) had announced a cash reward of Rs 2 crore.
• The Ministry of Railways offered her a promotion in the North-East Frontier Railway.
• The BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) had announced a cash reward worth Rs 50 lakh.
• The Indian Olympic Association offered a cash prize of Rs 40 lakh.
• BYJU’S had announced a cash reward of Rs 1 crore.

Medals achieved by Mirabai Chanu to date

Event	Category	Medal	Year
Tokyo Olympics	49 kg	Silver	2020
World Championships Anaheim	48 kg	Gold	2017
Commonwealth Games in Gold Coast	48 kg	Gold	2018
Commonwealth Games in Glasgow	48 kg	Silver	2014
Asian Championships in Tashkent	49 kg	Bronze	2020

 

National Achievements

• Major Dhyan Chand Khel Ratna Award, the highest sporting honor of India in the year 2018.
• Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award of India in the year 2018.

A look into the silver warrior Mirabai Chanu’s life

Saikhom Mirabai Chanu was born on the 8^th of August in the year 1994 to Saikhom Kriti Meitei and Saikhom Ongbi Tombi Leimba. She has six other siblings and she is the youngest of them all. Mirabai Chanu comes from a village called Nongpok Kakching which is about 30 km further from the city of Imphal, Manipur.

Mirabai Chanu’s immense strength had not gone unnoticed by her family. They were able to recognize her robustness just at the age of 12 when she was able to carry a big bundle of firewood with ease whilst her elder brother struggled to even pick it up.

Initially, Mirabai Chanu wanted to learn the art of archery. But she discovered her love and passion for weightlifting during a brief encounter with the sport in the year 2006. Despite the fact that she did not have much access to a lot of resources, she did not let those obstacles deter her from her path.

After not being able to secure a medal at the Rio Olympics in 2016, Mirabai Chanu redeemed herself by grabbing the majestic silver. She had trained hard along with her coach due to which she was not able to see her family for 2 years. Mirabai Chanu and her coach Vijay Sharma had admitted that her win is the result of a 5-year-old journey that was filled with both moments of joy and hardship.