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Mirabai Chanu: Manipur ke liye saalon baad medal jeet ke achha laga
Olympic medallist, weightlifter Mirabai Chanu talks about her recent win at National Games 2022, where she won a gold medal for her state, Manipur. She swells with pride to see the full-strength of women’s team participating in Nationals, and talks about the camaraderie between the players. Between tournaments, she aces at dealing with the high pressure and expectations.
New Delhi
The star weightlifter, Mirabai Chanu, clinched gold for her state, Manipur, at the recently concluded National Games in Gujarat. “Manipur ke liye kaafi saalon baad medal laake mujhe kaafi accha laga,” excitedly shares Chanu.
This was her second time participating in the National Games; the last time she won for Manipur was in 2015 when she took home a silver medal.
The 28-year-old athlete appreciates seeing a full-strength women’s team participating in Nationals and says, “Dekh ke lagta hai India mein bhi kaafi changes aa rahe hain. Ab har state se full team aa rahi hai ladkiyon ki, woh bahut achhi baat hai.”
Her competitor for the finals at the National Games was Sanjita Chanu, who is a fellow Manipuri weightlifter and made a comeback after four years; the two share a good relationship. Elaborating on the camaraderie between Indian players at international and national games, she says, “Sabka bartav same rehta hai. Aisa nahin hai ki nationals aur internationals mein alag rahe bartav. Jo camp mein saath rehte hain woh zyada close rehte hain. Competition ke time toh apna apna aa jata hai (healthy rivalry), baaki hum sab close rehte hain friends ki tarah (laughs). (We stay close as friends but sustain the competitive spirit when games are on).”
Talking about the ways she deals with high expectations and the pressure, she shares, “Training se related ho toh coach se baat karti hoon. Baaki waise kuchh aur ho toh main mummy se baat karti hoon because main unse sabse zyada close hoon. Kabhi training kharab ho jati hai toh hum pressure mein chale jaate hain. Main chahti hoon ki harr training main achhe se karun, par aisa toh nahin ho sakta. Toh tab main coach se baat karti hoon, aur jo kamiyan hain woh samajhti hoon.”
The 2020 Tokyo Olympics silver medallist is now preparing for the upcoming World Championships in December, which will also decide her selection for Paris Olympics next year. “Mera bahut mann hai Paris jaane ka!” ends Chanu.
Author tweets@priyaanshie_
