OLYMPIAN Erleen Anne Ando groped in her new weight class of 59 kgs to settle for fifth place in the International Weightlifting Federation World Championships at the Uzbekistan Sports Complex in Tashkent over the weekend.
Ando lifted 98 kg best in the snatch and 116 kg in the clean and jerk for a total of 214 kg kgs in the category Tokyo Olympics gold medalist and world record holder Taiwanese Kuo Hsing Chun ruled with gold medal lifts of 230 kgs in total lift and 130 kgs in clean and jerk and silver medal of 100 kgs in the snatch.
“There’s nothing to be ashamed about Ando’s performance, she did her best in the new category and we’re adjusting,” national team coach Christopher Bureros told BusinessMirror on Sunday.
The 23-year-old Ando transitioned from 64 kgs where she competed in at the Tokyo Olympics to 59 kgs.
“Being in the top five is not bad at all, it’s a very good performance,” Bureros said.
Yenny Alvarez of Colombia got the silver for lifting a total of 226 kgs, while Russian Olga Te clinched bronze with 218 kgs. Ukrainian Mariia Hanhur was fourth with 215 kgs.