Mirabai Chanu reveals she was on third day of periods after fourth place at Paris Olympics

Mirabai Chanu came tantalisingly close to clinching a second Olympic medal but a failed lift in her final attempt cruelly snatched the dream from her grasp, leaving her with a fourth place in the women’s 49kg event at Paris 2024 on Wednesday.

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Mirabai, who turns 30 today (August 8), lifted a total of 199kg (88kg+111kg). It was 3kgs lesser than her total at the Tokyo Olympics (202 kg) for a silver medal.

Mirabai could manage only three lifts out of six attempts across snatch and clean & jerk. She had only one successful lift in the clean and jerk section.

The former world champion had done well to keep herself in medal contention after the snatch event but her failure to lift 114kg in the final clean and jerk attempt cost her dearly.

Had she succeeded she would have bagged the bronze medal.

“I am happy with the performance because I managed this despite having very little time for recovery,” Mirabai told reporters.

“I was managing 85 in practice and I did it in the competition too. I was confident about clean and jerk also. I have recovered fully from my injury but it was the third day of that week of the month,” said the weightlifter. “It impacted me a bit. But this is not an excuse. We train to cope with this, because this is the most natural thing to happen to any woman.

Mirabai said the strategy was devised by her coach and she just followed the plan.

“It was going good, whatever the coach said I did. It is just destiny that I did not get medal, I did my best,” she said, smiling.

China’s Hou Zhihui broke the clean and jerk Olympic record as she successfully defended her title with an effort of 206kg (89kg+117kg).

Romanian Mihaela Cambei took home the silver with total of 205kg (93kg+112kg) while Surodchana Khambao bagged the bronze for her effort of 200kg (88kg+112kg).

Wearing the gold earrings shaped like Olympic rings presented by her mother, Mirabai began with a modest 85kg on the barbells, which she smoothly lifted.

Having reached the Paris Games on the back of an injury-plagued Olympic cycle, Mirabai did will to keep herself in the mix after the snatch section, which is her Achilles heel.

However to her disbelief, she fluffed her second lift while attempting to equal her personal best of 88kg.

But the former world champion put herself in the mix as she successfully snatched 88kg in the final attempt.

Cambei led the proceedings after the snatch section as she lifted 93kg in her final attempt while Zhihui who could manage only two legal lifts was 4 kgs behind the Romanian at 89kg.

Mirabai was off to a shaky start in the clean and jerk. The Indian was last to take her first attempt. While she cleaned 111kg, the two-time Commonwealth Games medallist was unable to execute the second part.

She immediately made a second attempt at the same weight and much to her and the Indian coaches relief she lifted the barbell.

But things went awry for the Manipuri as she failed her final attempt of 114kg, 5kg less than her personal best in clean and jerk.

(with inputs from PTI)