By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Rose Jean Ramos gave the country its first podium finish in the 2023 International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) Grand Prix II in Doha, Qatar on Tuesday, Dec. 5, after bagging three silver medals in her weight division.
The Zamboanga teen sensation stamped her class in the 45kg division by lifting 70 kilograms in snatch and 85 kilos in clean & jerk to tally 155 total, settling behind North Korea’s Won Hyon Sim.
Won flexed her might by ruling the weight class with an 82-kilo lift in snatch, 99 kilos in clean & jerk, and 181 kilo in total.
The 18-year-old Ramos, who also won three silvers in the Asian Weightlifting Championships in Jeju, South Korea last May, provided the lone bright spot for Team Philippines after her sister Rosegie Ramos and Lovely Inan faltered in the 49kg category.
Rosegie, who will turn 20 next year, came close to making it to the podium but settled for fourth place in snatch with her 88-kilo lift — four kilos lighter than bronze medalist Ri Song Gum of North Korea.
She struggled in clean & jerk, failing to lift her last two attempts at 106 kilos to settle for 103 at seventh, that eventually put her at fourth in total with 191 kilos.
Inan, who debuted at the 32nd Southeast Asian Games in Cambodia with a silver medal, managed ninth in total with 182 kilos after registering 78 in snatch for 12th and 104 in clean & jerk for sixth.
