Tokyo: Mirabai Chanu, hailing from a modest background in Manipur's Imphal, saw tough times and disastrous lifts in the previous showpiece events. But, with a 'never-give-up' winning attitude, the Padma Shri Awardee opened India's medal count on the first day of the quadrennial event in the 49 kg category. The 26-year-old weightlifter bagged a silver medal after successfully lifting 84Kg & 87Kg but couldn't better her own best of 88 Kg as she failed in the snatch attempt of lifting 89Kg.
After a disastrous outing in the 2016 Rio Olympics, Mirabai fought depression. She rose up to the World Championship event in 2017 to become a champion. In 2018, she beat her own national record. In 2021, ahead of the Olympics, she set a new world record in the clean and jerk and finally, the 26-year-old weightlifter bagged silver at the prestigious Tokyo Olympics.
Twitterati was filled in jubiliation post Mirabai's lifting of weights to glory. Here is how the sports fraternity reacted to her historic silver medal at Tokyo Olympics:
Here is how the political fraternity showered praises to the flying start by Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu: