A roadmap to follow during weightlifting competition at the Paris Olympics: (More Sports News)
Weightlifting Athletes to Watch At Paris Olympics:
—Hampton Morris, United States: At 20, the Marietta, Georgia, native will be the youngest American weightlifter to compete at the Olympics since Cheryl Haworth in 2000. Morris broke the clean and jerk 61-kilogram world record by lifting 388 pounds (176 kilograms) at a World Cup event in Thailand earlier this year.
—Lasha Talakhadze, Georgia: Having set 26 world records over the course of his career, the 30-year-old back-to-back Olympic champion in the heaviest weight class is returning to try for a three-peat. He's back after missing the European championships earlier this year because of a knee injury.
—Maude Charron, Canada: The 64kg gold medalist in Tokyo is again one of the top contenders, now in the 59kg division. The 31-year-old from Quebec is just one of five Canadians — men or women — to win an Olympic medal in the sport.
—Yekta Jamali, Refugee Team: From Iran initially, she fled to Germany two years ago because she faced discrimination for being a woman in the sport. A world junior silver medalist, Jamali is not even 19 yet and hopes to win a medal as part of the IOC Refugee Team.
Storylines to Follow:
—Doping troubles have dogged weightlifting, to the point the IOC threatened to remove it from the Olympic program beginning in 2028. It has had a reprieve and been confirmed for Los Angeles after leadership changes and attempted reforms, but drug testing will be heavily scrutinized in Paris.
—The last U.S. men's weightlifting medalists were Mario Martinez and Guy Carlton in 1984 and the last to win gold was Paul Anderson in 1956. Hampton Morris stands the best chance of adding a new chapter to that history, though defending champion Li Fabin of China is formidable competition.
—China has another chance to dominate in weightlifting after leading the Tokyo Olympics with seven gold medals and eight overall. No other country had more than one gold.
Key Dates:
—Aug. 7: Men's 61kg and women's 49kg
—Aug. 8: Women's 59kg and men's 73kg
—Aug. 9: Men's 89kg and women's 71kg
—Aug. 10: Men's 102kg, women's 81kg and men's +102kg
—Aug. 11: Women's +81kg
Reigning Champions:
Men
61kg: Li Fabin, China.
67kg: Chen Lijun, China.
73kg: Shi Zhiyong, China.
81kg: Lu Xiaojun, China.
96kg: Fares Ibrahim, Qatar.
109kg: Akbar Djuraev, Uzbekistan.
+109kg: Lasha Talakhadze, Georgia.
Women:
49kg: Hou Zhihui, China.
55kg: Hidilyn Diaz, Philippines.
59kg: Kuo Hsing-chun, Taiwan.
64kg: Maude Charron, Canada.
76kg: Neisi Dajomes, Ecuador.
87kg: Wang Zhouyu, China.
+87kg: Li Wenwen, China.
