There were 11 participants in the division, but the real competition was between the top five competitors - China’s Qingquan Long, Indonesia’s Irawan Eko Yuli, DPR Korea’s Cha Jum Chol, Chinese Taipei’s Yang Chin Yi and Hoang Anh Tuan of Vietnam.
In the snatch, Tuan started well by lifting 126 kg easily.
When the load was raised to 130 kg, only Tuan, Long and Irawan continued in competition as the other athletes were only able to lift 128 kg.
The Chinese competitor lifted 130 kg in his first attempt, while it took Tuan and Irawan three attempts before they were successful.
But then the Chinese athlete moved ahead of the competition by lifting 132 kg, setting a new world record.
In the clean and jerk, Tuan pulled out all the stops to take revenge on the Indonesian athlete who grabbed the gold medal from him at the 24th Southeast Asian Games in Korat, Thailand last year.
In his first attempt, Tuan, along with Chinese competitor Long, lifted 155 kg easily while Irawan lifted only 152 kg.
In the following two attempts, the Indonesian peaked at 158 kg.
Without hesitation, Tuan shot to overtake Irawan and snatch the silver medal by attempting 160 kg.
Tuan appeared excited and a bit tense before his second attempt, and unfortunately failed.
The Vietnamese team anxiously awaited his third attempt as another unsuccessful attempt would bring only a bronze, and failure to take revenge for the loss to Irawan in Thailand.
But Tuan managed to do what the team and country expected of him.
He lifted 160 kg in the clean and jerk and won the silver medal by lifting a total weight of 290 kg.
Chinese competitor Qingquan Long won the gold medal and set a new world record, lifting a total weight of 292 kg while Yuli of Indonesia took the bronze with a total weight of 288 kg.
Afterwards, Tuan said, “I trained hard for this historic moment.
I want to thank the government officials and my coach for their support and training.
“This is a glorious moment for Vietnam and I want to acknowledge my family, friends and all the fans who have lots of love for Vietnamese sports and for me.”
National Olympic Committee (NOC) head Hoang Vinh Giang said, “Tuan’s victory has opened an opportunity for Vietnamese sports.
It proves that if we put forth great effort and go in the right direction, we will be successful.
“Tuan’s win was due to strong will, bravery and good training.”
The Vietnamese NOC immediately awarded Tuan US$3,000 and Dong Luc Company awarded him VND100 million ($6,060).
Vietnam won its first ever Olympic medal when Taekwondo featherweight Tran Hieu Ngan won silver at the 2000 Sydney Olympic Games.
Reported by Xuan Lam-Trung Ninh |
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