The International Weightlifting Federation has recently announced the Olympic Weight Categories for the Los Angeles Olympics 2028. This comes after the recent decision from the International Olympic Committee ,to approve an additional weight class per gender ,which has increased The total number of Olympic weight classes from 10 to 12, Six per gender. How does that affects Indian Weightlifting prospects
The Olympic weight categories for the LA Olympics are as follows:
Men: 65kg, 75kg, 85kg, 95kg, 110kg, +110kg
Women: 53kg, 61kg, 69kg, 77kg, 86kg, +86kg
The decision to include additional weight classes has essentially forced the IWF to reshuffle the Weight classes once again, for the second time in a year. Earlier in December 2024, IWF rolled out new bodyweight categories, reducing the number of categories from 10 to 8. Now they are being reshuffled again.
In the men’s the existing 71,79,88 & 94 kg categories have been changed to 70,75,85 and 95 respectively. In the women’s the existing 48,58,63 Kg categories have been replaced by 49,57 & 61 Kg categories.
The new weight categories will come to effect from August 2026.
Effect of Change on Indian Athletes
With the Women’s 53 Kg set to be the lightest Olympic weight class, Star Indian Weightlifter, Olympic Silver medalist and former World Champion Mirabai Chanu faces a prospect of moving up a weight category, a significant shift for an athlete who has competed in the 48 kg and the 49 kg divisions throughout her career.
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As per Mirabai herself, She is confident of moving up to 53kg by the 2028 LA Olympics and that she has enough time to build on her strength and gain muscle. She believes the shift will increase her power and help her reduce injury concerns that has intensified in recent years.
“The 53kg category is a boon for Chanu. Gaining weight is much easier than losing it. Sometimes losing even 100g can be difficult” , her coach Vijay Sharma says.
There are however both upsides and downsides to this. While this could mean easier weight management and better recovery and hence lesser risk of injuries, something which has troubled Mirabai throughout her career. Moving up means she will have to pack up more muscles, which will lead to an increase in absolute strength.
The downside, however, is that she will face far stiffer competition in the 53 kg category than in the familiar 49s. Mirabai risks losing her natural competitive edge as she steps up against athletes who are inherently bigger with a bigger body frame, possess superior leverage, and typically produce higher strength outputs at this weight.
To compete in the 53 kg, Mirabai must add muscle and possibly make changes in her technique, and build a higher total. She has the experience and work ethic, the challenge is closing the size and leverage gap with naturally bigger opponents.
For Mirabai, her immediate focus is on next year’s Commonwealth & Asian Games, after which she will start the transition to the new weight category.
Apart from Mirabai, this reshuffling of weight classes will impact Indian lifters differently based on where they currently compete. Muthupandi Raja, already in the 65 kg class, remains the least affected, as his division continues unchanged and becomes the lightest men’s Olympic category, though competition will intensify with former 61 kg and 67 kg lifters moving in.
Narayana Ajith, currently in 71 kg, will be forced to either cut down to the non-Olympic 70 kg class or bulk up to the Olympic 75 kg division, where he will need to add 3–4 kg of functional mass to stay competitive.
Youth World Champion Bedabrat Bharali, lifting at 79 kg, sits between the new 75 kg and 85 kg Olympic weight categories and must choose between dropping weight, risking some loss of power or moving up to 85 kg, which is going to be a deep and physically demanding Olympic class. He currently competes at a bodyweight of around 77 kg so moving down to the 75s seems like a more feasible option.
Sairaj Pardeshi, at 88 kg, is best suited to shift down to 85 kg, where his speed and technique will translate well, considering that he currently competes at a bodyweight of around 86.5 Kg while moving up to 95 kg would place him against far larger lifters from earlier 96 kg and 102 kg categories.
Meanwhile, 17-year-old Koyel Bar, who set Youth World records at the Commonwealth Weightlifting Championships 2025, competing in the 53 kg women’s division, is ideally aligned with the new structure, as 53 kg becomes the lightest women’s Olympic category, allowing her to grow naturally into a field that will tighten with former 49 kg and 55 kg athletes joining in.
However, this also means she will eventually be in direct contention with Mirabai Chanu for a national team spot.Alternatively, she could choose to move up to the 57 kg non-Olympic category for now, allowing more natural growth without immediately entering a crowded Olympic field.
