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The Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships, the 30th edition of the tournament established in 1980, served as a qualifying event for the 2026 Commonwealth Games. With approximately 300 athletes from 31 countries competing, the event showcased intense competition across senior, junior, and youth divisions. Olympics medallist Mirabai Chanu led the Indian contingent, which featured talents like Bindyarani Devi (58kg), Harjinder Kaur (69kg), and Achinta Sheuli (79kg). The championships, hosted in India for the third time after Pune (2015) and Greater Noida (2023), offered direct qualification for the 2026 Commonwealth Games.
Returning to the competitive action, Mirabai Chanu clinched the gold medal in the women’s 48kg category at the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships 2025, in Ahmedabad on Monday, August 25, 2025. The Tokyo Olympics silver medallist, competing for the first time since a heartbreaking fourth-place finish at the Paris 2024 Olympics, lifted a total of 193kg, 84kg in snatch and 109kg in clean and jerk to secure the top podium spot. This victory not only marked her comeback after a year reportedly marred by injuries but also solidified her qualification for the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow, while setting her sights on the World Weightlifting Championships later this year.
Mirabai Chanu wins gold on comeback in 2025 Championships
Mirabai Chanu’s performance outshone her competitors, reinforcing her dominance in a weight class where she previously won world championship gold in 2017 and Commonwealth Games medals in 2014 (silver) and 2018 (gold). The 2025 Championships marked Chanu’s return to the 48kg category, a weight class she hadn’t competed in since 2018, following the International Weightlifting Federation’s (IWF) restructuring of Olympic weight categories for the 2028 Los Angeles Games. Having competed in the 49kg division since 2019 where she won Olympic silver in 2020, Commonwealth Games gold in 2022, and a World Championship silver in 2022, Chanu embraced the challenge of dropping to 48kg.
“I’m delighted to be back in competition. Everything is okay now, and recovery is good,” Chanu reportedly stated. The 31-year-old weightlifter, has reportedly battled multiple injuries, including hip tendonitis sustained at the 2023 Asian Games, entered the competition with a modest entry total of 192kg, seven kilograms below her Paris effort indicating a cautious approach. However, her execution on the platform appeared to be anything but conservative, as she dominated the 48kg field with precision and poise.
