DOHA — Chinese Taipei, Sri Lanka, Azerbaijan and Moldova lifters claimed gold medals on the opening day of the 10th FISU World University Weightlifting Championship in Doha, where 116 athletes from 21 countries are competing through Sept. 12.
Four weight categories were contested at the Education City Student Center, with the women’s 49kg and 53kg and men’s 60kg and 65kg events opening the university championship.
Huang Yi-Chen of Chinese Taipei won all three gold medals in the women’s 49kg category, lifting 84kg in the snatch and 100kg in the clean and jerk for a combined 184kg.
Spain’s Marta Garcia Rincon took all three silver medals with a total of 169kg, while compatriot Celia Riuos Villamor claimed the bronze medals with 152kg.
Ting-I Cheng completed another clean sweep for Chinese Taipei in the women’s 53kg category, winning the snatch with 87kg, the clean and jerk with 108kg and the overall title with 195kg.
Romania’s Adriana Cosmina Pana won silver in the snatch and overall, while Chinese Taipei’s Hsieh Chia-Yin took silver in the clean and jerk.
Sri Lanka’s Avindu Liyana dominated the men’s 60kg category, securing gold in all three disciplines with 105kg in the snatch, 132kg in the clean and jerk and 237kg overall. Spain’s Oscar Gomez Martinez won the three silver medals, while Chinese Taipei’s Tang Chun-Yen took bronze.
In the men’s 65kg category, Azerbaijan’s Tehran Mammadova won gold in the clean and jerk with 159kg and the overall title with 289kg. Moldova’s Ion Badanev took gold in the snatch with 132kg and finished one kilogram behind Mammadova overall.
Qatar’s Nader Bakr will begin his campaign in the men’s 95kg category on Friday, while Wissal Yakhlaf will compete in the women’s over-86kg category on Saturday.
The championship features 16 weight categories, with eight each for men and women, and is the second world championship organised by the Qatar Collegiate Sports Federation since its establishment in 2023.
