In an electrifying opener to the Asian Weightlifting Championships in Jiangshan, east China's Zhejiang Province, home favorite Zhao Jinhong stunned fans with a double dose of history. The newly crowned world champion shattered the women's 45kg snatch world record twice on her way to clinching snatch, clean & jerk, and total golds.
Zhao kicked off her campaign confidently, hoisting 80kg in her first snatch attempt. Not content, she then blasted past the previous 87kg mark, set by the DPRK's Won Hyon Sim, with an 88kg lift. Fueled by the cheers of the crowd, Zhao pushed again, powering through 90kg to freshen the record once more.
The momentum carried into the clean & jerk, where Zhao opened at 100kg to secure the top lift of the day. Though two tries at 111kg fell short, her combined performance left rivals in the dust and secured a clean sweep of gold medals.
"My goal was to break the snatch world record, and I'm glad I achieved that," Zhao said. "When I challenged the clean & jerk record, I wasn't quite as fired up. The lights unsettled me and I lost my footing, so I couldn't complete the lift."
Men's 55kg: Wang's Comeback
In the men's 55kg division, China's Wang Weidong faced early adversity when a 115kg snatch was ruled invalid. Unfazed, the 21-year-old nailed 115kg and 119kg in his next attempts, but the initial fault left him trailing Vietnam's Lai Gia Thanh, who went a perfect 120kg snatch for gold.
Wang roared back in the clean & jerk, smashing 142kg on his first lift to edge ahead on total. He capped his performance with an impressive 146kg final lift, finishing with a combined 265kg and grabbing both clean & jerk and overall golds.
Day one of the Asian Championships combined raw strength, strategy, and resilience, proving that weightlifting continues to push the limits of human performance.
Reference(s):
Zhao shatters snatch world record at Asian Weightlifting Championships
cgtn.com
