Rizki Juniansyah sets new world record as he claims weightlifting gold
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Rizki Juniansyah of Indonesia during the Paris Olympics in August 2024, when he won a gold medal in the men's 73kg weightlifting event.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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CHONBURI – Indonesia’s Rizki Juniansyah is looking well ahead to the Olympics following his record-breaking SEA Games 79kg weightlifting gold on Dec 15, when he also shattered a clean and jerk world record.
“I’m touched and proud, but my ultimate goal is the 2028 Olympics in Los Angeles. My goal is to compete there,” he said after the competition at Chonburi Sports School, as quoted by the Indonesian media.
The 22-year-old, who claimed Olympic gold in the 73kg category at the Paris Games in 2024
Rizki then successfully lifted 205kg in the clean and jerk – 1kg more than the 204kg world record he had set just months earlier at the world championships in October.
The lift was executed smoothly, with a steady clean followed by a controlled jerk, earning loud cheers from the audience. His combined total of 365kg not only secured the gold but also exceeded the previous world record total of 362kg in the category – set by Egypt’s Abdelrahman Younes in November.
With two world records, he finished ahead of Muhammad Erry Hidayat of Malaysia, who took silver with 336kg, and Thailand’s Natthawut Suepsuan with 335kg.
According to the Indonesian media, Rizki recently commissioned as a second lieutenant in the military and he celebrated his win with a salute on the platform as he received his gold.
He also revealed to reporters that his initial plan was to break the world record in the snatch, but his coach felt otherwise.
“I intended to break the world record in the snatch, but my coach wouldn’t allow it and advised me to save my energy for the clean and jerk,” he said.
In related events on the same day, the Philippines’ Elreen Ando won the second SEA Games gold medal of her career in the women’s 63kg division with a total of 229kg from her 102kg snatch and 127kg clean and jerk.
She overcame an initial missed attempt in the clean and jerk to pull ahead of Vietnam’s Nguyen Thi Thuy Tien (219kg) and Thailand’s Thanaporn Saetia (218kg).
Thailand’s Phattharathida Wongsing claimed the women’s 69kg gold with 229kg, narrowly beating Indonesia’s Indah Afriza (227kg) and the Philippines’ Kristel Macrohon (221kg).
