Tokyo Games silver medallist Mirabai Chanu, away from the spotlight owing to an injury-plagued build-up, will be in focus on Wednesday when she attempts to become India’s first weightlifter to win two Olympic medals but a challenging field and lingering fitness concerns stand in the 29-year-old’s way.

The lifter, who opened India’s medal tally on the first day of the competition in Tokyo three years ago, has kept a low profile since suffering hip tendonitis at the Asian Games last October.

Chanu has endured a rather underwhelming Olympic cycle thanks to injury and workload management. Her best effort since Tokyo came at the 2022 Commonwealth Games where she lifted 201kg (88kg+113kg).

At the Tokyo Olympics, delayed by a year because of the coronavirus pandemic, Chanu won the silver by heaving 202kg (87kg+115kg).

Competing in her pet 49kg weight category, Chanu is likely to be in the scramble for a silver or bronze here if she matches or betters her personal best in both sections.

Training in Paris for a month, Chanu has got help from American Dr Aaron Horschig, a former weightlifter-turned-physical therapist and strength and conditioning coach, who has been working with her since 2020.

Reigning Olympic champion China’s Hou Zhihui is the favourite to defend her title.

While there are murmurs surrounding her fitness after she returned from a five-month hiatus, both Chanu and chief national coach Vijay Sharma have asserted that the athlete from Manipur has completely recovered.

“We know that Mira has to go well beyond the 200kg mark. 202kg will not cut it this time but somewhere around 205-206kg should do it. But we are prepared for the challenge,” Sharma said.

However, this is easier said than done, as Chanu has struggled to surpass her personal best of 88kg in the snatch, set at the 2020 National Championships, and 119kg in clean and jerk, achieved at the 2021 Asian Championships, for quite a while.

While Chanu, who turns 30 on Thursday, will have one eye on her competitors’ barbells, her main battle will be with herself at the South Paris Arena.

Her performance in the snatch section continues to be her Achilles heal and her mediocre clean and jerk performance recently also doesn’t inspire confidence. While a 90kg snatch lift continues to elude her, four of Chanu’s competitors have breached the coveted mark.

Having said that, she has been known to be a fighter and one of the most tenacious athletes in the country. The country’s eyes are peeled for what Wednesday brings.