Mirabai Chanu Wins Historic Silver, Ends India's 28-Year Wait for Asian Games Weightlifting Medal

Mirabai Chanu delivered one of the standout moments of India's campaign at the Aichi-Nagoya Asian Games 2026 on Wednesday, winning silver in the women's 49kg weightlifting event and ending a 28-year drought for India in the sport at the continental showpiece.

How the competition unfolded

Chanu produced a total lift of 198kg, combining 87kg in the snatch with 111kg in the clean and jerk, to secure second place on the podium at the Nagoya City Trade and Industry Center. Gold went to North Korea's Ri Song-gum, the reigning world champion and two-time defending Asian Games champion in the category, who set a new world record with a combined lift of 215kg, comprising 94kg in the snatch and 121kg in the clean and jerk. Ri's dominance in the category has made her close to unbeatable on the continental and world stage in recent years, leaving silver as a highly credible outcome for the rest of the field.

Why this medal matters

The Asian Games had, somewhat surprisingly, been the one major international meet missing from Chanu's decorated career. She already holds an Olympic silver from Tokyo 2020, along with medals from the World Championships and the Commonwealth Games, making her one of Indian weightlifting's most consistent performers of the past decade. Wednesday's result completes that set and gives India its first Asian Games weightlifting medal in 28 years, underlining just how rare podium finishes have been for the country in this sport at this event.

For a discipline that has often struggled for consistent international success outside a handful of standout athletes, Chanu's medal is likely to be viewed as a significant boost, both for the sport's visibility in India and for the broader emphasis Indian sports bodies have placed on strength sports ahead of future Olympic cycles.

India's broader campaign

The medal came on an eventful Day 4 for India at the Games, alongside continued action across shooting, badminton, hockey, kabaddi, squash and boxing. India's campaign had already picked up momentum a day earlier when the women's cricket team won gold after beating Sri Lanka in the final, and Chanu's silver added further weight to a growing medal tally that had India placed inside the top ten of the standings heading into the day's remaining events.

With Olympic medallists and established stars like Chanu continuing to deliver on the biggest stages, India's overall show at Aichi-Nagoya is shaping up as one of its more encouraging outings at the Asian Games in recent editions, though the full picture will only become clear once the Games conclude and the final medal table is settled.

This is an original summary based on public reporting. See our editorial policy for how we source, write, and correct our stories.