<p>Olympic silver medallist Saikhom Mirabai Chanu is set to miss the first two events with Olympic ranking points for the 2028 Los Angeles as she and her head coach Vijay Sharma stick to their long-term plan of switching weight categories only after this year’s major competitions.</p>.<p>They had initially planned to begin competing in the minimum Olympic weight category (53kg) only from 2027 after the Manipuri lightweight lifter finishes competing at the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games in her favouree 49kg.</p>.Weight shift gamble for Mirabai Chanu.<p>The idea, as per Sharma, was to gradually move up in weight during the off-season rather than rushing the transition. That process would involve adding muscle mass and working extensively on strength and conditioning before she begins competing in the higher division.</p>.<p>However, the Olympic qualification pathway, released last month, has made it clear that Mirabai would not feature in the first two qualifiers -- including October-November's World Championships which is right after the Asian Games -- that offer ranking points.</p>.<p>“We have no choice but to miss the first two events but that's not a problem as we can make up for it in the 2027 season's ranking events,” Sharma said.</p>.<p>The qualification race for the Los Angeles Games runs from July 2026 to May 2028 and includes 10 designated events spread across two phases. In the first phase, lifters must record three valid total results across six competitions, including continental events and designated qualifiers.</p>.<p>The second phase features four competitions, where athletes must post at least two total results. The best three totals from the first phase and the best two from the second will determine an athlete’s position in the Olympic Qualification Ranking.</p>.<p>An athlete will gain a point for every kg of weight they lift in both clean & jerk and snatch categories. A total of 120 lifters (60 men and 60 women) will compete across six weight categories per gender at the Los Angeles Games, with most quota places (108) awarded through the ranking list.</p>
<p>Olympic silver medallist Saikhom Mirabai Chanu is set to miss the first two events with Olympic ranking points for the 2028 Los Angeles as she and her head coach Vijay Sharma stick to their long-term plan of switching weight categories only after this year’s major competitions.</p>.<p>They had initially planned to begin competing in the minimum Olympic weight category (53kg) only from 2027 after the Manipuri lightweight lifter finishes competing at the Commonwealth Games and the Asian Games in her favouree 49kg.</p>.Weight shift gamble for Mirabai Chanu.<p>The idea, as per Sharma, was to gradually move up in weight during the off-season rather than rushing the transition. That process would involve adding muscle mass and working extensively on strength and conditioning before she begins competing in the higher division.</p>.<p>However, the Olympic qualification pathway, released last month, has made it clear that Mirabai would not feature in the first two qualifiers -- including October-November's World Championships which is right after the Asian Games -- that offer ranking points.</p>.<p>“We have no choice but to miss the first two events but that's not a problem as we can make up for it in the 2027 season's ranking events,” Sharma said.</p>.<p>The qualification race for the Los Angeles Games runs from July 2026 to May 2028 and includes 10 designated events spread across two phases. In the first phase, lifters must record three valid total results across six competitions, including continental events and designated qualifiers.</p>.<p>The second phase features four competitions, where athletes must post at least two total results. The best three totals from the first phase and the best two from the second will determine an athlete’s position in the Olympic Qualification Ranking.</p>.<p>An athlete will gain a point for every kg of weight they lift in both clean & jerk and snatch categories. A total of 120 lifters (60 men and 60 women) will compete across six weight categories per gender at the Los Angeles Games, with most quota places (108) awarded through the ranking list.</p>