Elreen Ando (left) and Hidilyn Diaz (right). | Facebook and Inquirer photos
CEBU CITY, Philippines — Cebu’s weightlifting ace Elreen Ando and Olympic gold medalist Hidilyn Diaz will face each other in the Asian Weightlifting Championships this May after major changes were imposed recently by the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) in weight categories.
This was officially confirmed by Ando’s head coach and national weightlifting coach Ramon Solis to CDN Digital.
“Mag abot sila karong May sa Asian Weightlifting Championships sa Korea. Pareho na sila og category karon kay si Hidilyn gipasaka man siya sa 59-kilogram gikan sa 55 kg, unya si Ando monaog gikan sa 64 kg ngadto sa 59 kg,” said Solis who is currently officiating the Southeast Asian Games qualifiers in Manila.
(They will meet this May in the Asian Weightlifting Championship in Korea. They have the same category now because Hidilyn rose to the 59-kilogram from 55 kg.)
It means that Ando and Diaz will compete for the lone spot in the women’s 59 kg. category for the Paris Olympics.
“Kung kinsa modaog nila sa category, mao ra ang makaduwa sa Paris Olympics. Tungod man gud ni sa bag-o nga categories giapil sa Olympics. Mao magkaabot gyud silang duha. Para nako, silang duha dunay advantage ug disadvantages sa usag-usa. Si Hidilyn mokusgan kay magpadako man siya tungod sa pagsaka niya. Si Ando, nagpaubos man siya, so naa jud diperensya,” Solis said.
(Whoever will win in the category, she will compete in the Paris Olympics. This is because of the new categories that are included in the Olympics. That is why the two of them will meet. For me, the two of them have each their disadvantages and advantages. Hidilyn will become stronger because she is getting bigger because of her rise (in weight). Ando, lost weight, so there is really a difference.)
Ando is Solis’s ace weightlifter not just in the national team, but also with the University of Cebu (UC) Webmasters. They already partnered in the Tokyo Olympics last year wherein Ando finished at seventh place in the 64 kg division.
Solis was on Ando’s side when the latter exited the 2022 IWF World Weightlifting Championships last December in Bogota, Colombia after suffering from a left elbow sprain.
The 24-year-old Cebuana weightlifter needed more than a month to recover, and is currently competing in the SEA Games qualifiers in Manila where Diaz is closely watching, according to Solis.
“First time ni Ando moalsa karon gikan sa iyang pagkainjured. Pero nindot iyahang gipakita karon kay nagsnatch na siya og 95kg, ug 125kg clean and jerk diri sa qualifying. Maayo unta og magpadayon iyahang progress diri kay naa ra ba si Hidilyn Diaz ug iyahang husband nagobserve,” said Solis.
(It is the first time for Aldo to lift now from the time she was injured. But she performed well because she lifted 95 kg. in the snatch, and 125 kg in the clean and jerk here in the qualifying. I hope that her progress will continue here because Hidilyn Diaz and her husband are observe.)
Diaz already announced that she would skip SEA Games that would be held in Cambodia in May to focus for the Olympics.
Besides Ando, Solis fielded in four other Cebuano weightlifters in Fernando Agad (55kg), Dexter Tabique (71kg), John Febuar Ceniza (71kg), and Geoffrey Frasco (55kg) in the SEA Games qualifiers.
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