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Iran had a 1-2 finish in both the heaviest men’s events on the final day of the 2025 World Youth and Junior Championships in Lima, Peru. The women’s winners on an all-juniors programme were from Turkmenistan and Turkiye.

Iran’s big four weighed in at 509kg and lifted a combined total of 1,556kg.  

At 109kg Alireza Nasiri has been making 230kg clean and jerks in training – enough for the junior world record – but he declined his final attempt after five good lifts and finished 30kg clear on 180-220-400.

Farhad Gholizadeh, who won the Asian youth title on his last international appearance two years ago, made 165-205-370 in second place.

“I was tired and because it was one lift straight after the other I didn’t feel ready for the world record today – but I know I can do it,” Nasiri said.

Alireza Nasiri (IRI)

He lifted at 102kg last year, when he was second in the Asian Juniors to the junior world record holder Shahzadbek Matyakubov on 171-218-389. “I felt better at 102 but I wanted to come up in weight because I want to be going for gold at the Los Angeles Olympics,” said Nasiri. “The category will be 110 there. I am 19 and I can improve a lot in three years.”

The +109kg super-heavyweights Hamidreza Mohammaditanha and Taha Nemati made lower totals than Nasiri and have very little chance of making it to the Olympics in 2028.

Iran’s leading super-heavyweight, 21-year-old Alireza Yousefi, is training again after knee surgery three months ago and is hoping to lift at the World Championships in Norway in October. Then there is Ayat Sharifi, 24, who is entered for the Asian Championships in China starting this week. Their best totals are way higher than today’s medallists.

Mohammaditanha made 181-213-394 and Nemati 180-212-392. They tried to make big jumps in clean and jerk and both failed with two of their attempts.

Hamidreza Mohammaditanha (IRI)

Georgii Myand from Russia, competing as a neutral, made 175-207-382 in third place. His only failure was a final clean and jerk attempt at 214kg, which left Marek Gugala third in that discipline on 208kg.

Andrii Borovskyi from Ukraine held on to third place at 109kg on 165-201-366 when Marcin Ziolkowski from Poland failed with his final clean and jerk attempt at 207kg.

Yemialyan Maskaleu from Belarus, competing as a neutral, bombed out in clean and jerk after finishing second in snatch on 169kg. Kudratbek Salimjonov from Uzbekistan, who dropped to sixth on total, was third in snatch on 167kg.

Women Junior 87

After three near misses in second place during the Championships, Turkmenistan had a winner when Anamjan Rustamova put in an impressive performance in clean and jerk. She was the only athlete in the top eight to make all three attempts after the interval.

Anamjan Rustamova (TKM)

The Asian junior champion Rustamova, who will be 19 on Thursday, made 108-141-249, a bigger total than the super-heavyweight winner. She was sixth in snatch after one failure but was 5kg clear at the end.

Vanessa Lizarraga from Mexico made 109-135-244 in second place and Mariia Gruzdova from Russia, competing as a neutral, was third on 108-134-242.

Rahma Ahmed from Egypt declined her final attempt after suffering an injury in clean and jerk. She won snatch gold on 110kg, and Zhao Ziyu from China took snatch bronze on 109kg before finishing fourth on 241kg.

Fatmagul Cevik (TUR)

Women Junior +87

Fatmagul Cevik from Turkey won the title when she was the only one of the top three to make her final attempt in a tense finish. Cevik made 110-135-245 ahead of Yairan Tysforod from Colombia on 111-131-242.

Lee Haeun from Korea made a 7kg jump on her penultimate lift to take clean and jerk gold and move into third place, but she failed with the last one and finished 106-135-241. Hanna Kalashnyk from Ukraine, who was fourth, won silver in clean and jerk on 135kg.

By Brian Oliver

Photos by Giorgio Scala/Deepbluemedia