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GOLDEN LIFT | Hidilyn Diaz finally ends PH's Olympic gold drought with weightlifting win

Hidilyn Diaz is the Philippines' first ever gold medal winner in an official Olympic event.
By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA--The state of the Philippine nation after Monday night: the Philippines is now a country with an Olympic gold medal.

In a historic moment at the Tokyo International Forum, Hidilyn Diaz won the women's 55 kilogram weightlifting event, prevailing over eight other lifters within her division.

Diaz grabbed the gold in style, actually, setting an Olympic record in the clean-and-jerk category, which basically decided the contest.

Diaz went neck and neck with China's Liao Qiuyun in the C&J especially that they finished tied in the snatch after lifting the heaviest at 97 kilos, and the battle for the gold boiled down to the last lift.

Liao completed a 126-kilogram lift in the C&J, forcing Diaz to go for 127 to steal the top spot from Liao.

Diaz, however, smoothly cleared the 127-kilo lift to win it all.

Diaz, whose 224-kilogram total also set an Olympic record, ended the Philippines' 97-year wait for an official Olympic gold.

A total of PHP33 million worth of monetary pledges awaits her once she returns home from Tokyo.

Zulfiya Chinshanlo of Kazakhstan claimed the bronze with a total of 213 kilograms lifted.

Muattar Nabieva of Uzbekistan, despite setting the Olympic record for the snatch with a 98-kilogram lift, missed out on the podium as she could only clear 114 in the C&J for a total of 212.

Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno

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