Elreen Ando celebrates after winning a bronze medal during the women’s 64kgs weightlifting competition in the Asian Games. | Photo from the POC
CEBU CITY, Philippines — A day after fellow Cebuano John Februar Ceniza missed a kilogram for a podium finish, Cebu finally has a medalist in the Asian Games, thanks to Olympian weightlifter Elreen Ando who earned a bronze medal Monday night, October 2, 2023, in Hangzhou, China.
Ando didn’t disappoint in what could’ve been another medal drought for the Philippines in weightlifting after Olympic gold medalist, Hidilyn Diaz only finished fourth in the women’s 59-kilogram weight division.
Ando of Barangay Carreta, Cebu City finished her campaign with a total of 222-kilogram lift. She had 126kgs in clean & jerk and had 96kgs in snatch in her first Asian Games.
She was behind eventual silver medalist China’s Pei Xinyi who lifted 234kgs (104kgs in snatch, 130kg in clean & jerk) in total.
Capturing the gold medal in the women’s 64kgs was Rim Unsim of North Korea who lifted a total of 251kgs (111kg snatch, 140kg clean & jerk).
The fourth to seventh placers in Ando’s weight division were Karina Kaz Goricheva (210kgs) of Kazakhstan, Sumire Hashimoto (205kgs) of Japan, South Korea’s Han Jian (204kgs), and Uzbekistan’s Shakhlokhon Abdullaeva (198kgs), respectively.
Iran’s Reihaneh Karimi and Mongolia’s Anuujin Ganzorig didn’t finish the competition.
On the other hand, Diaz lifted a total of 223kgs to miss the podium with North Korea’s Kim Il Gyong capturing the gold medal and setting a new record in the women’s 59kgs division.
Taiwan’s Hsing Chun Kuo (227kgs) captured the bronze medal in Diaz’s weight division, while Lou Shifang (240kgs) bagged the silver medal.
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