By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Hidilyn Diaz missed the podium but improved her performance in her new weight class in the 2023 IWF World Weightlifting Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Friday, Sept. 8.
The Tokyo Olympics champion finished seventh in the women’s 59kg division with a total lift of 224 kilograms – three kilos heavier than her maiden appearance in the said weight class at the 2023 Asian Championships in Jinju, South Korea last May.
She struggled in the snatch after lifting just 97 kilos for 11th place, but made it up in clean & jerk with 127 kilos for sixth.
“I messed up in the snatch. I could have reached an even better result, but things didn’t go as well as I wanted,” Diaz said in an article for the international federation’s website.
“I was perhaps overwhelmed by this new category for me… and I inevitably got a bit nervous at the beginning of the competition. Then, things went better towards the end,” she added.
Luo Shifang of China ruled the weight class by posting 243 kilos, while Ukraine’s Kamila Konotop (236) and another Chinese in Pei Xinyi (232) went home with silver and bronze medals.
Diaz, who jumped to a heavier weight class after the 55kgs where she won the Olympic gold was scrapped in the Paris Olympics program, remains confident of her future chances in a new weight category.
“I know I have plenty of room for improvement in the upcoming competitions. I am hopeful that I can get close to 230kg,” she said.
“I tell you more – I want to win the gold in Paris!”
Meanwhile, fellow Tokyo Olympian Elreen Ando was not far behind Diaz after finishing eighth with 222 kilos.
The 24-year-old Cebuana redeemed herself after failing to rank in last year’s edition in Bogota, Colombia after lifting 100 kilos in snatch and 122 kilos in clean & jerk.
The PH campaign continues on Wednesday, Sept. 13, with Vanessa Sarno and Kristel Macrohon competing in the women’s 71kg.