Shrugging off the back injury, world champion Li Zheng from China won the
third gold medal of the 15th Asian Games weightlifting competition in the men's
56kg class hereon yesterday.
Li lifted 130kg in the snatch, more than any of his rivals, andthen 157kg in
the clean and jerk to finish with a combined total of 287kg, which was enough to
beat Hoang Anh Tuan of Vietnam by two kilograms for the gold.
The bronze medal went to Lee Jong Hoon of South Korea with a total of 277kg.
The 20-year-old Li, who claimed a gold medal in the 2006 worldchampionships
in Santo Domingo, suffered a back injury in trainingafter he came to Doha.
"After my back was injured, I felt totally relaxed instead of being panic, so
I didn't feel pressure at all while competing," Lisaid after the match.
"Li walked out of the psychological shadows, and I am so proud of him," said
Li's coach Wang Guoxin.
"He is one of the gold medal favorites in the Beijing Olympics and I am
confident about that," he added.
Hoang, bronze medalist in the worlds in 2006, looked upset after the
competition.
"I was determined to win the gold medal in the Asian Games whenI got the
bronze in the worlds, but I failed again," the 21-year-old Hoang told Xinhua.
"However, I am satisfied with my result. Li showed stronger power than I on
the platform and the only thing I can do is to work harder next year and
challenge him in the worlds," Hoang said.
