Mirabai Chanu had won the silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics in the 49kg category, but her weight category has been removed for the Los Angeles Olympics in 2028. Chief national coach Vijay Sharma feels that bulking up to 53kg will work in Chanu’s favour.
Star Indian weightlifter Mirabai Chanu’s weight category for the 2028 Olympics and the weightlifter is now set to bulk up to the 53kg category for the 2028 Los Angeles Games.
Chanu had won a silver medal at the Tokyo Olympics in 2021 in the 49kg category, but the lowest class in the upcoming Games will be 53kg after the International Olympic Committee’s (IOC) decision to increase the total number of weightlifting events to 12.
Despite the removal of her weight category, national coach Vijay Sharma feels that bulking up to 53kg will work in Chanu’s favour. “This (removal of 49kg) is a good thing for Mirabai because cutting down her weight to 48kg was a taxing process,” Sharma told PTI.
The International Weightlifting Federation (IWF), in a statement late Monday, said, “Following the encouraging decision taken by the IOC to enlarge the weightlifting programme at the Olympic Games Los Angeles 2028, where 12 events (six men, six women) will be contested.”
Meanwhile, this is the second time in a year that the IWF has tweaked the weight categories in less than a year. The Manipuri had earlier shifted to the 48kg category this year after the IWF axed the 49kg division from the Olympics. The category has been reinstated for IWF events such as the World Championships, but it will not feature in the Olympics.
Chanu will now move to the 53kg category but will continue to compete in the 48kg/49kg until the Asian Games next year. Following the Asiad, Chanu will move to the 53kg category and will have two years for that and to prepare for the Olympics. “Right now, she will continue in the same weight class till the Asian Games; after that, we will begin the process of changing the weight to 53kg,” Sharma added.
Bulking herself up to the 53kg category will also help Chanu build more muscle mass and strength eventually, as it will also help the other weightlifters in Chanu’s category. Chanu had won the gold at the Commonwealth Championships and a silver medal at the World Championships in the 48kg this year.
The six women’s Olympic categories now include – 53kg, 61kg, 69kg, 77kg, 86kg, and +86kg. The men’s categories will include the 65kg, 75kg, 85kg, 95kg, 110kg, and +110kg weight classes.
The Olympic categories are part of a slightly adjusted, new set of 16 IWF bodyweight categories. The new categories will come into effect from August 1, 2026. “The new categories were proposed by the IWF Technical Committee, and were provisionally approved by the IWF Executive Board in its last meeting in Forde (NOR), on the occasion of the 2025 IWF World Championships. They became official after the ratification by the IWF Athletes Commission,” the IWF said.