Chanu to compete in 53kg as 49kg class dropped from 2028 Olympics

India’s Olympic silver medallist Mirabai Chanu is set for a major shift in her career after her 49kg weight category was scrapped from the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics. The star lifter, who made history at the Tokyo Games, will now move up to the 53kg division, the new lowest category for women as per the revised Olympic weightlifting programme.

The International Olympic Committee (IOC) and the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) recently approved new weight categories, expanding the total number of weightlifting events to 12 six each for men and women. The new structure, effective from August 2026, removes the 49kg class that Chanu had dominated for years.

Chief national coach Vijay Sharma said the decision could actually help the Manipuri lifter. “This is a good thing for Mirabai because cutting down her weight to 48kg was always a tough and exhausting process,” Sharma said. “She will continue in her current weight class till the Asian Games next year and then gradually prepare for the 53kg division.”

Chanu, 31, had switched to the 48kg class earlier this year after the IWF first removed the 49kg category from the Olympics. Though it was later reinstated for non-Olympic events like the World Championships, it won’t return to the Olympic programme. Despite the uncertainty, Chanu managed to win gold at the Commonwealth Championships and silver at the World Championships in the 48kg category.

The shift to 53kg could ease the physical strain that comes with maintaining a lower body weight, something Chanu has often spoken about. Competing at a higher weight will allow her to build more muscle mass and improve overall strength.

The IWF announced that the new women’s Olympic weight divisions will now be 53kg, 61kg, 69kg, 77kg, 86kg, and +86kg. For men, the categories will be 65kg, 75kg, 85kg, 95kg, 110kg, and +110kg. These adjustments were proposed by the IWF Technical Committee, provisionally approved by the Executive Board, and officially ratified by the IWF Athletes Commission.

In the 2024 Paris Olympics, the women competed in 49kg, 59kg, 71kg, 81kg, and +81kg divisions, while the men’s categories were 61kg, 73kg, 89kg, 102kg, and +102kg.

For Chanu, the new chapter offers both a challenge and an opportunity to reinvent herself in a heavier weight class and aim for another Olympic podium in Los Angeles.