Former Indian weightlifting star Karnam Malleswari, hailing from Andhra Pradesh, believes that Saikhom Mirabai Chanu is poised for a great performance at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics. Chanu strengthened her bid for a spot in the Games after clinching gold at the 6th Qatar Internationals in December 2019.
During the Olympic qualifier in Doha on December 20, 2019, Chanu dominated the women's 49kg category. Although she secured gold with a lift of 194kg, she had previously shown even greater strength by lifting 201kg at the 2019 World Championship in Thailand. Her excellence in the sport earned her the prestigious Padma Shri and Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna awards from the Indian government in 2018.
The 25-year-old athlete carries the memory of a disappointing outing at the 2016 Rio Olympics. At the time, she was unable to successfully lift 85kg during the qualifying round and missed her attempts at 104kg and 106kg, even though her best clean and jerk record stands at 107kg.
Mirabai Chanu's track record includes gold and silver medals in the 48kg category at the 2014 and 2018 Commonwealth Games. Following her victory at the 2019 Qatar International Cup, Sports Minister Kiren Rijiju took to Twitter to praise her achievement, encouraging Chanu to set her sights on winning a medal at the Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Karnam Malleswari, a trailblazing Olympic medalist from the turn of the millennium, shared her thoughts on the evolving strategies used to help athletes reach the international podium. Malleswari's own rise to global prominence began in 1993, and she remained a dominant force in the sport for the following three years.
Malleswari noted that athletes across various disciplines often have to wait months for a single opportunity to compete, which can lead to severe demotivation if the performance doesn't go as planned. To combat this, she highly praised the 'Khelo India University Games' initiative introduced by the Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports.
According to Malleswari, the KIU Games, set to begin in Bhubaneswar on February 22nd, are vital for keeping athletes mentally sharp. Furthermore, she believes the winners of these games will have a better chance of representing India on the world stage.