Asian athletes have dominated the women’s 48kg and 49kg weight divisions for 25 years, winning 27 of 30 Olympic medals and holding all World records. And so, the desperation for an Asian Games medal is understandable for India’s Mirabai Chanu.

“I’m feeling so happy... so light. Bilkul weight hat gaya hai [the weight has lifted completely],” she said after the win.

In the Hangzhou Asiad of 2023, Mirabai knew she had tweaked her hip during warm-up, but she gritted her teeth and loaded 117kg on the bar — the second-most she had ever attempted — as she bid for bronze.

However, she collapsed and had to be carried off stage. Previously, she’d fallen short in Incheon 2014 and missed the 2018 Jakarta edition with injury.

When the lightest Olympic weight division moved to 53kg, Mirabai — rather than bulking up for the LA Games after missing out at Paris — kept her weight down to focus on the podium in Nagoya.

“I had to work so hard to preserve myself to maintain my weight but this was so important for me.”

With a silver medal in hand now, she exclaimed, “It feels ki life complete ho gaya (It feels like life is complete),” she said.