Armenia: 10 athletes in Bucharest
Initial Entries indicate ten Armenian weightlifters set to compete in eight different categories at the 2009 European Weightlifting Championships in Bucharest Romania. After finishing in 1st place at the 2008 European Weightlifting Championships in Lignano, Italy with thirteen combined Gold medals, three combined silver medals, and one bronze, Team Armenia looks to repeat their successful performance this year in Bucharest. Armenia will be represented by seven male athletes, and three female athletes. Arakel Mirzoyan and Gevorg Kakoyan will compete in the 69kg category, Gevorik Poghosyan and Aram Andrikyan will be performing in the 85kg category. Gegham Atoyan (94kg,) Artur Babayan (105kg,) and Ruben Aleksanyan (105+ kg) round out the group of Armenian men at the competition. Artur Babayan is the only returning male athlete from last year's competition. Gevorg Davtyan (Gold Medalist 77kg,) Ara Khachatryan (Silver Medalist 77kg,) and Tigran L. Martirosyan (Silver Medalist 69kg) do not appear on the starting list this year. On the women's competition, it's a bit of different story, as the three Armenian weightlifters Meline Daluzyan (63kg,) Nazik Avdalyan (69kg,) and Hripsime Khurshudyan (75kg,) are all past Gold Medalists at the European Championships. They will look to repeat their performance from the last couple of years. Meline Daluzyan has won the Gold two years in a row, while Nazik Avdalyan improved on her Silver medal performance from 2007 by winning the Gold in 2008. Hripsime Khurshudyan would have repeated her Gold Medal performance from 2007 had she not failed in the snatch event by over-extending herself with a 115kg. lift which she failed. She would receive the top spot in the Clean-and-jerk but would not place because of the missing marks in the snatch. All three women are in top shape and should repeat their Gold Medal performances this
