As the aroma of sizzling omelettes filled the morning air at her base camp, Mirabai Chanu found herself surrounded by the next generation of lifters – wide-eyed 13 and 14-year-olds dreaming of Olympic glory. But for Mirabai, now 31, the flashbacks were vivid. “Pain,” she said, flipping an omelette, “has been my only constant companion since I was their age.”

It wasn’t a poetic exaggeration. It was a stark truth – one written in surgery scars, in relentless rehab sessions, and in the cruel fourth-place finishes that shadowed her most recent years on the big stage.

But on Thursday in Forde, Norway, in a half-empty arena echoing with effort and silence, Mirabai finally reclaimed her place on the international podium. Lifting a total of , she clinched a – her third Worlds medal, but perhaps

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