NEW DELHI: Tokyo Olympics bronze medallist Mirabai Chanu, recuperating from a thigh injury, has delayed her return to competition.
Initially scheduled to participate in the Asian weightlifting meet in China in May, Mirabai will now compete at home during the Commonwealth championships in Ahmedabad in August.
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The former world champion will transition to the new weight class of 48kg following the discontinuation of her usual 49-kg division. Mirabai’s injury had forced her to miss the World Championships last year. The 30-year-old has remained absent from competition since her fourth-place finish at the Paris Olympics in Aug.
“We have been taking all kinds of precautions during Mirabai’s training. As part of her coaching staff, I don’t want to rush her back into competition mode. It’s rather intermittent with her thigh injury. She has been training at 60-70% of her capacity. She is yet to regain peak fitness. We are targeting the Commonwealth championships for her return,” said head coach Vijay Sharma.
“We opted to compete primarily because it’s happening in India. It will serve as a valuable assessment of Mirabai’s fitness before the senior world championships in Norway in October,” he added.
Sharma informed that Mirabai will continue to train in India ahead of the world championships.
