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The global strength of weightlifting was highlighted in Lima when athletes from 22 countries were on the podium on a truly international day at the World Youth and Junior Championships.

Albania had its first ever world champion, and among the 22 was Nauru, the Pacific island whose population of 12,000 is 1.4 billion less than China, the only double winners of the day. The medallists came from all five continental federations.

“I am so happy about this,” said the IWF President Mohamed Jalood. “It shows what a universal sport we have. To have Nauru on the podium, and Albania taking medals at the same time as China is an example to everybody of weightlifting’s popularity in all parts of the world.”

Jalood was speaking after presenting the medals to Albania’s first champion, 17-year-old Enkileda Carja. She not only won the 64kg Youth title, but took snatch bronze in the Juniors too, behind two athletes from China. Carja broke all three European youth records in making 98-115-213.

Carja Enkileda (ALB)

“We’ve been waiting for this,” said her coach Eglantina Kalemi. “Preparations have gone well, and Enkileda is a full-time athlete now. Albania’s first world champion and three European records – that’s very impressive!”

Femliy Notte from Nauru was second, as she had been last year. She made only two of her six attempts on 92-110-202, which was well below her best in training.

Seyedeh Hosseini from Iran was third on 86-111-197, and Valeriia Drevsnovskaia, an Individual Neutral Athlete from Russia, won bronze in snatch on 86kg.

China had a 1-2 finish in the Juniors ahead of Sophia Shaft from the United States. Yang Liuyue made 106-130-236 for gold, Jiang Yanfang finished 105-126-231, and Shaft made 97-126-223 from her two good lifts.

Men 81 Juniors and Youths

It was a bad day for Yedige Yemberdi from Kazakhstan, who was unbeaten before today and had won one youth and two junior world titles since 2022. His strength is in clean and jerk but this time he failed twice in that discipline and was out of the medals on total.

Chen Shunnan (CHN)

Chen Shunnan from China won on his international debut, making 156-190-346 from four straight good lifts. He missed his last two attempts, as did the man trying to catch him, Yemberdi’s Kazakhstan team-mate Yerasyl Saulebekov.

That left Azuma Rakuei from Japan in second place on 155-185-340, with Saulebekov third on 150-190-340. Khikmatillo Khaydarov from Uzbekistan won snatch bronze on 154kg and Yemberdi was third in clean and jerk on 187kg, which was 12kg lower than his best effort in last year’s World Juniors.

Serhii Kotelevskyi from Ukraine had a nervous wait before he could celebrate his Youths victory.  The 16-year-old European youth champion made five from six for 142-172-314, then had to watch as Didarbek Jumabayev from Turkmenistan tried to overtake him.

Jumabayev failed with the first of his two remaining attempts, then made a 10kg jump to go for gold in clean and jerk and total. He got the bar up but lost it behind and finished 137-168-305.

Maksims Vasilonoks from Latvia was third on 136-161-297, failing only with his final attempt, and Samuele Di Marzio from Italy was fourth, 3kg further back. Jose Mantilla from Mexico won bronze in clean and jerk on 166kg.

Men 73 Juniors and Youths

Park Ju Hyeon from Korea made a 7kg jump on his final attempt to win clean and jerk gold and the Junior world title on 147-177-324. Park, who was second in the Asian Juniors last December, denied Tiberiu Donose from Romania with that last lift of the session.

Park Ju Hyeon (KOR)

Donose made 145-176-321, and third-placed Mohamed Al Marzouq from Saudi Arabia finished 146-170-316. Alexandr Baldji from Moldova, who was fourth, won bronze in clean and jerk on 172kg.

Hussein Abdelrahman from Egypt won here last year when Lima hosted the World Youths, and repeated the feat today at a different weight. He moved up from 67kg and finished a long way clear.

Abdelrahman, 16, tried and failed for all three youth world records with his final attempts of 145kg in snatch and 177kg in clean and jerk. He finished on 141-165-306.

His nearest challenger, Kakamyrat Annamyradov from Turkmenistan, made 130-160-290 and the bronze medal went to Yernur Myrzakhmet from Kazakhstan on 131-155-286.

Women 59 Juniors and Youths

The top three Juniors were all former Youth world champions – at three different weights. Thanaporn Saetia from Thailand was an impressive winner on 96-115-211. Two years after winning the youth world title at 64kg, Saetia is thriving at the lower weight, having won the Asian and world titles within five months.

Thanaporn Saetia (THA)

Gelen Torres from Colombia, in her first competition at this weight, was second on 93-113-206. She was youth world champion two years ago at 55kg.

Last year’s 59kg youth champion, Paz Casadevall from Argentina, was third on 91-113-204.

Xeniya Prozorova was a clear winner for Kazakhstan in the Youths. The 15-year-old debutant made five good lifts for 91-108-199 before declining her final attempt.

The Asian youth champion Marjona Abdumutalova from Uzbekistan made 88-102-190 in second place. Polina Pavlovich, competing as an Individual Neutral Athlete, was third on 85-104-189, becoming the third Russian youth medallist in two days. Ivanis Silva from Venezuela won snatch bronze on 86kg.

By Brian Oliver

Photos by Giorgio Scala/Deepbluemedia