Vietnam pins Olympic medal hope on weightlifting

Hanoi (VNA) – Good news for Vietnamese fans ahead of the upcoming Rio Olympic Games is that weightlifter Thach Kim Tuan, Vietnam’s biggest medal hope, has nearly recovered from a previous injury.

Answering the media in Brazil, coach Huynh Huu Chi said Tuan’s injury isn’t too serious and he is still training hard for the event.

According to Chi, Tuan’s training achievement exceeds his result of 287kg in the total lift in the men’s U56kg at the World Weightlifting Championships last year which brought him a bronze medal.

Tuan will target to lift 140kg in the snatch, 163kg in the clean-and-jerk and over 300kg in the total lift in Brazil.

Tuan’s two main rivals in the world’s foremost sports competition will be Long Qingquan of China, who won gold in the 2008 Olympic Games in Beijing, and Om Yun Chol of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, who won the gold medal at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

“Tuan has a lot of experience via international events, but Tuan’s biggest rival is himself,” added Chi.

Tuan, who was born in the southern province of Binh Thuan, has had very stable results over the past three years. At the World Weightlifting Championships in 2014, his performance of 286kg in the total lift was equivalent to Om’s result, but Tuan came second because he was heavier than his rival by 40g. At the world event last year, Tuan only bagged a bronze medal with a total lift of 287kg as he was suffering from a knee injury.

Vietnam is also pinning its hopes on weightlifter Vuong Thi Huyen, who won two silvers and a bronze in the women’s 48kg at the World Weightlifting Championships last year. She also won a silver medal in the Asian championships in April and two gold medals at the Asian event held last year.

Vietnamese weightlifters will start their competition on August 7.-VNA