Cebuano weightlifter John Febuar Ceniza secures silver medal in 32nd SEAG

John Febuar Ceniza. | Photo from the International Weightlifting Federation Facebook page

CEBU CITY, Philippines— The pride of Barangay Pasil, Cebu City, John Febuar Ceniza, secured a silver medal in the men’s 61-kilogram weightlifting event of the 32nd Southeast Asian Games (SEAG) in Cambodia on Saturday, May 13, 2023.

Ceniza competed with four other weightlifters in the event.

It was a fitting comeback for Ceniza who didn’t win a medal in the recently concluded 2023 Asian Weightlifting Championships in Jinju, South Korea earlier this month.

Ceniza finished his campaign in the SEA Games with a total lift of 297 kilograms. His clean and jerk tallied 169kg, while he lifted 128kg in snatch, good for a silver medal.

Indonesia’s Eko Yuli Irawan ruled the competition after lifting a total of 303kg from his 170kg clean and jerk and 133kg snatch.

Thailand’s Teerapat Chomchuen earned the bronze medal after lifting a total of 296kg from 165kg clean and jerk, and 131kg snatch.

Brunei’s Mohammad Nashrul Abu Bakar settled for fourth place with a 226kg total lift, while Vietnam’s Tran Anh Tuan Nguyen was booted out of the competition after failing in the snatch.

This was Ceniza’s second time to win a silver medal in the SEA Games.

It’s best remembered that Ceniza, who is a varsity weightlifter of the University of Cebu (UC) Webmasters, also won a silver medal in the 2019 SEA Games held in Manila.

However, Ceniza vied in the lighter, 55kg division by lifting a total of 252 kg.

Ceniza was one of the three Cebuano weightlifters who are campaigning in the SEA Games.

The other two are Olympian Elreen Ando and Dexter Tabique. Ando will vie in the 59kg women’s division, while Tabique in the men’s 89kg division.

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