RIO DE JANEIRO Olympics weightlifting silver medalist Hidilyn Diaz wants to return to China to train in preparation for her gold-medal bid in the Tokyo 2020 Games.
Diaz trained in China for all of her three Olympics—Beijing 2008, London 2012 and Rio. Her last proved effective, as she ended the country’s 20-year Olympic medal drought.
“I’m open to training overseas,” Diaz said during her first appearance in the Philippine Sporstwriters Association (PSA) Forum at Golden Phoenix Hotel on Tuesday since she clinched the women’s 53-kg silver medal in Rio.
The Olympic feat earned Diaz the Athlete of the Year trophy, the highest honor the PSA conveys to top-performing athletes annually. The Awards Night for 2016 is set on February 13 at the Le Pavilion in Pasay City.
For 2017, Diaz would be concentrating on two major international competitions—the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games in Ashgabat, Turkmenistan, in September and the International Weightlifting Federation World Championships in Anaheim, California, in November.
Malaysia scrapped Diaz’s weight category in this year’s Southeast Asian Games in Kuala Lumpur.
“It’s [China] where the strong lifters train. It should be China,” said Diaz, who returned to school and is enrolled as a scholar at College of Saint Benilde’s Department of Business Management.
“China remains the powerhouse. I like to train there because it improves my morale seeing my opponents. It motivates me when I train with the best weightlifters,” she told the forum, presented by San Miguel, Accel, Shakey’s and the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corp.
Since the Asian Indoor and Martial Arts Games and World Championships are at least eight months away, Diaz trains under her coach, Tony Agustin, at the Rizal Memorial Sports Complex.
Diaz attends school four days a week—morning and evening sessions.
“You need discipline. I study and train and, at the same time, I’m a member of the Philippine Air Force. Time management is key and it’s not easy,” the Airwoman First Class Diaz said.
Image credits: Roy Domingo