Chanu Saikhom Mirabai set three new Commonwealth Games records in the women's weightlifting 48-kilogram category on Thursday, improving on her own personal bests to clinch India's first gold medal of the event.
In a remarkable performance, Chanu smashed the Games record in snatch, pulling off clean lifts in all her three attempts (80 kg, 84 kg and 86 kg).
She then lifted more than double her body weight (103 kg, 107 kg and 110 kg) in three successful attempts to claim the clean and jerk as well as the overall Games record. The showing helped her better the silver she had won in the 2014 Glasgow CWG.
Speaking to AP after her feat, Mirabai Chanu said that she is happy to have upgraded from a silver in her last Commonwealth Games to a gold this year.
I’m so happy at this moment. This is my second Commonwealth Games. Then (at her previous Commonwealth) I had won a silver medal and this time I won a gold medal. So I’m really happy.Mirabai Chanu, Gold Medalist, Weightlifting
When asked about how confident she was before the games, she said that she had no idea that she will win a medal with a Commonwealth Games record.
"Well, I thought I will win at least a medal, that was what was in my mind when I came here. But I had no idea that I would be able to win with a Commonwealth Games record. What I thought was if I give my best performance, then I should be able to win gold and also have a record," she said.
Chanu’s nearest but still a very distant rival going into Thursday’s competition, Amanda Braddock of Canada, failed to complete a single lift in the clean and jerk after managing a best of 76 kg in snatch.
The silver in the event went to Mauritian Marie Ranaivosova (76 kg + 94 kg), while the bronze was taken by Sri Lanka's Dinusha Gomes (70 kg+ 85 kg).
Earlier, P Gururaja claimed a silver medal in the men's 56kg event to open India's medal account in the quadrennial extravaganza.
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