Beijing Olympic Games

Updated: 2008-08-17 21:50:02

(L-R) Szymon Kołecki, Ilya Ilin and Khadzhimurat Akkaev (Photo credit: Getty Images)

(BEIJING, August 17) — Ilya Ilin became the hero of Kazakhstan after his win in the Men’s 94 kilogram Weightlifting final on Sunday, August 17. His win not only brought Kazakhstan’s first gold medal in Beijing, but also the country’s first ever Olympic Weightlifting gold medal in history.

Ilya Ilin in the final (Photo credit: Getty Images)

Before going into the final, Ilin was among the favorites to win the gold, along with Poland’s Szymon Kołecki and Azerbaijan’s Nizami Pashayev. Ilin was the winner of the 2006 World Championship. Kołecki is the world record holder of the Clean and Jerk with 232kg. Pashayev was the world champion in 2005.

Ilya Ilin with the gold medal (Photo credit: Getty Images)

Pashayev did best among the lifters in the Snatch, reaching 181kg after three attempts. Ilin chose to give up his third attempt after lifting 180kg to reserve some energy. Kołecki used up all his three attempts and lifted 179kg. The 2008 Asian champion, Asghar Ebrahimi of Iran, also lifted 180kg.

However, the real battle came in the Clean and Jerk. Pashayev surprisingly failed his first two attempts at 215kg. He eventually succeeded with his last trial, but his chance of winning the gold had slipped away. On the other hand, world recorder holder Kołecki only lifted a conservative 217kg with his first attempt, which hindered his chance for much improvement.

Ilya Ilin (back) celebrates his victory. (Photo credit: Yang Lei/Xinhua)

Ilin directly tried for 223kg with his first attempt but failed. His strategy forced Kołecki to increase his second attempt to 224kg. Both succeeded in their second attempts and tied at 403kg, but Ilin’s 0.09kg less body weight put him in first place. Under huge pressure, Kołecki changed his weight for the last attempt and let Ilin lift first. Ilin completed 226kg successfully, then Kołecki asked for 228kg, 4kg less then his world record, but he failed. A standing ovation from the crowd was dedicated to Kołecki and the new champion – Ilin.

“In the Clean and Jerk I got 226kg. I began to congratulate myself because I had done my best. If others had lifted more than me, they are good boys. I would have been happy for them,” said Ilin after the final. “In my second Snatch I hurt my elbow and the doctor tried to fix it. I was worried that I could not compete, but my coach helped me and gave me confidence. He helped me stand up psychologically.”

Khadzhimurat Akkaev from Russian Federation only lifted 185kg in the Snatch, but an excellent 217kg performance in the Clean and Jerk handed him the bronze medal.

Updated: 2008-08-17 20:59:17

Ilya Ilin kisses his gold medal. (Photo credit: Jeff Gross/Getty Images)

Kazakhstan’s Ilya Ilin won the gold medal in the Men’s 94kg Weightlifting class at the Beijing Olympics here on Sunday.

Ilin hoisted 180kg in the Snatch and 226kg in the Clean and Jerk for a winning total of 406kg.

Szymon Kolecki of Poland took silver with 403kg and Khadzhimurat Akkaev of Russia grabbed bronze with 402kg.

Ilya Ilin takes a lift. (Photo credit: Yang Lei/Xinhua)
Ilya Ilin takes a successful lift. (Photo credit: Jeff Gross/Getty Images)
Ilya Ilin (back) celebrates his victory. (Photo credit: Yang Lei/Xinhua)

Updated: 2008-08-17 18:40:05

(BEIJING, August 17) — The Men’s Weightlifting 105kg competition will conclude on August 18. Giants from Belarus, Poland, Russia and Ukraine will lift for the gold medal.

2005 world champion Dmitriy Klokov of Russia is favored to win. The 25-year-old has performed quite consistently for the past few years, grabbing a bronze at both the 2006 and 2007 World Championships. He has an entry total weight of 420kg.

2006 world champion Marcin Dołęga from Poland comes to the Games with a favorable 430kg entry total weight, and is one of the medal-worthy finalists. Dołęga also holds the world record of 199kg in the Snatch.

Twenty-year-old wonder kid Andrei Aramnau of Belarus is another possible winner. The young lifter lifted 423kg in the 2007 World Championships to claim the gold at the age of 19. If he wins he’ll bring Belarus’ their first ever Olympic Weightlifting gold.

Other medal candidates include 2006 World Championships silver medalist Dmitry Lapikov of Russia, 2005 World Championships bronze medalist Martin Tešovič of Slovakia and Athens silver medalist Igor Razoronov of Ukraine.

The final will take place at 7:00 p.m. (UTC/GMT 8).

Updated: 2008-08-16 22:56:28

The medalists (from left to right): Olha Korobka, Jang Mi-ran and Mariya Grabovetskaya (Photo credit: CFP)

(BEIJING, August 16) — The last gold medal in Women’s Weightlifting was taken by Jang Mi-ran, who broke the world record for the Snatch, Clean and Jerk, and total weight in the over-75 kilogram class final on August 16.

Jang Mi-ran on the podium (Photo credit: CFP)

Jang was the silver medalist in Athens and one of the most dominant lifters in this class. This time she didn’t let any lifter come close to her performance. She set a new world record of 140kg for the Snatch, then went on to set a new world record of 186kg for the Clean and Jerk and won the final with a new world record of total weight of 326kg.

Jang Mi-ran in the final (Photo credit: Xinhua)

“At the moment that I won the Gold medal I felt so happy, because not everyone can win a Gold medal. I think of it as a gift from God,” said Jang after the medal ceremony. “I want to thank my parents, my coach, and the crowd today, because every time I came to the platform, the audience cheered for me.”

Jang Mi-ran in the final (Photo credit: Xinhua)

2006 and 2007 World Championships bronze medalist Olha Korobka of Ukraine ranked second with a total weight of 277kg, 49kg less than Jang. Twenty-one-year old Mariya Grabovetskaya of Kazakhstan placed third with a total weight of 270kg.

Updated: 2008-08-16 21:02:15

(BEIJING, August 16) — Jang Mi-ran of the Republic of Korea broke three world records en route to gold in the Women’s Weightlifting over 75 kilogram weight class on Saturday, August 16.

Jang, the silver medalist in Athens, combined 140kg in the Snatch and 186kg in the Clean and Jerk for a winning total of 326kg, 49kg ahead of the runner-up, Okha Korobka of Ukraine. Mariya Grabovetskaya of Kazakhstan was third at 270kg.

Updated: 2008-08-16 20:54:58

Jang Mi-ran of ROK celebrates. (Photo credit: Yang Lei/Xinhua)

Jang Mi-ran of the Republic of Korea broke three world records en route to gold in the Women’s Weightlifting over 75 kilogram weight class on Saturday, August 16.

Jang Mi-ran of ROK attempts a lift. (Photo credit: Yang Lei/Xinhua)
US Cheryl Haworth completes. (Photo credit: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
Victoria Mavridou of Greece attempts a lift. (Photo credit: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)
Cristina Cornejo Scheelje of Peru competes. (Photo credit: Jed Jacobsohn/Getty Images)

Updated: 2008-08-16 18:19:56

(BEIJING, August 16) — Ten lifters will compete for medals in the Men’s 94 kilogram Weightlifting category on Sunday, August 17.

Out of the six medalists who won in the last two Olympics, only the silver winners, Szymon Kolecki of Poland and Russia’s Khadzhimurat Akkaev, are participating in this year’s competition. Kolecki also clinched third place in the 2007 World Championship held in Chiangmai, and second place in the 2006 World Championship in Santo Domingo. The two are highly expected to claim honors again for their countries.

Russia’s Roman Konstantinov is also a competitive weightlifter is this class. He ranked first in both the Snatch and total weight at the 2007 World Championship, and in the 2006 World Championship he lifted the largest weight in the Snatch for a third place finish in the total. The 25-year-old also won the 2007 European Championship in France.

Also expected to perform well is Cuba’s Yoandry Hernandez, who clinched first place in the Clean and Jerk and second in total weight at the 2007 World Championship.