Asian Games stint a worthy experience for Cebuana Ando

DESPITE falling short in her first Asian Games stint, Cebuana weightlifter Elreen Ann Ando does not feel bad at all.

The 19-year-old Barangay Carreta, Cebu City, native wound up fourth overall in the women’s 63-kilogram weightlifting event yesterday in Jakarta, Indonesia. She finished with a total lift of 201 kilograms in the snatch, and clean and jerk.

For Ando, who is also a varsity lifter of the University of Cebu (UC) Webmasters, it was still a worthy experience that she can learn from.

“It was a pretty good experience for me. This is my first time but I badly want to make a comeback after this. I want to train harder and ultimately win the gold medal next time,” Ando told Cebu Daily News.

She had a total of 90 kgs snatch while her clean and jerk had a total lift of 111 kgs.

Olympians Kim Hyo Sim and Hyo Sim Choe of North Korea bagged the gold and silver medals, respectively. Thai Rattanawan Wamalun settled for the bronze.

“I should not have been too complacent during the competition. But overall, it was still a worthy experience,” Ando said.

Last Tuesday, Hidilyn Diaz, the Rio Olympics silver medalist, dominated the women’s 53kg category for the country’s first gold.

Ando regularly trains at the UC Webmasters weightlifting training center, which is also the training center for the national team members for weightlifting in Cebu. It is one of three training centers in the country, the others being in Metro Manila and Zamboanga, Diaz’s home town.