As the weightlifting competition at the Commonwealth Games begins in Glasgow on Sunday, all eyes will be on Mirabai Chanu as she takes the platform in the women’s 48kg category, looking to make it three Commonwealth Games titles in a row.Mirabai has been one of India’s most consistent performers in the sport, and the country will be hoping for another memorable display from the Manipuri star as she returns from a career-threatening injury. This time, however, he will not be the state’s only medal hope.Five members of India’s weightlifting team hail from Manipur, underscoring the state’s remarkable dominance in the sport. Watching their progress with immense pride will be veteran coach S Brojendro Singh, who played a key role in the early development of all the five, including Mirabai.
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“It is a matter of great pride for me. I coached all five of them when they first started weightlifting. Seeing that now they represent India at the Commonwealth Games is a great satisfaction,” Brojendro, who has been coaching in the state sports academy since 2004, told STOI.While Brojendro believes discipline, dedication, sacrifice and unwavering commitment have been central to Manipur’s success in weightlifting, he says Mirabai’s achievements have transformed the sport in the state.“Mirabai inspired a whole generation. After people saw what she achieved, many young people took up weights, believing that they too could reach that level. She showed that it was possible,” he said.One of those inspired by Mirabai is Nirupama Devi, the silver medalist at the 2025 Commonwealth Championships, who will make her CWG debut in the women’s 63kg category. Although he won a place in the junior national camp in 2016, things did not go as planned after 2019.“There were injuries, illnesses and the Covid-19 break, due to which I was out of the national camp. But I continued to work hard and now my focus is only to give my best to CWG,” said Nirupama.Now training under national coach Vijay Sharma in Modinagar, he marked his comeback with a silver medal-winning total of 217 kg at the 2025 Commonwealth Championships. Apart from his coaches, Nirupama says Mirabai also played an important role in his development.“Mirabai didi always guides us. Whenever we don’t understand something, she patiently explains and motivates us. She has always been very supportive,” he said.Another big medal hope is the young Martina Devi, who will compete in the women’s +86 kg category. After recovering from an ACL injury, he enjoyed a breakthrough 2026 season, winning the junior and senior national titles.Bindyarani Devi, who won silver in the women’s 55kg category at the Birmingham CWG, has since moved to the 58kg division. Rishikanta Singh, who narrowly missed out on the podium in Birmingham, has also switched categories to 60kg and heads to Glasgow after winning gold at the 2025 Commonwealth Championships.Meanwhile, the entire Indian weightlifting team completed their final phase of preparation at the University of Wolverhampton’s Walsall Campus, where they trained from June 29 until last week before traveling to Glasgow.The training camp is expected to play a key role as the lifters offer to peak at the right time in the coming days. For Brojendro, however, the medals will only tell part of the story. Watching five lifters who started their journeys under his guidance represent India at the Commonwealth Games is, he says, the biggest reward of his coaching career.