Philippine delegation wins seven golds, four silvers and a bronze in IWF World Youth Championship
THE FUTURE looks bright for Philippine weightlifting.
Rosalinda Faustino capped the country’s glorious performance in the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Youth Championships with a gold and a silver medal yesterday in Durres, Albania.
Ms. Faustino, a 15-year-old Asian Youth gold winner, copped the clean and jerk mint with a 100-kilogram lift while ending up with the silver in the total where she had 178 kg and finished behind Colombian Gelen Yulieth Torres Gomez, who had a 182 kg.
It concluded what had been a magnificent effort by the five-strong delegation, which raked in seven gold, four silvers and a bronze overall, for a sport that had already delivered the country’s breakthrough Olympic gold courtesy of Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo in the 2021 Tokyo Games.
The golden juggernaut came from Prince Kiel delos Santos (two), Albert Ian delos Santos (two), Eron Borres (one) and Angeline Colonia (one).
“Five young lifters bravely represented this country in Albania and everyone went home with a gold or two for a total of seven,” Samahang Weightlifting ng Pilipinas president yesterday told The STAR.
“This is our future, we’ve proven our point and we’re ready for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics,” added Monico Puentevella, who thanked the Philippine Sports Commission, Manny V. Pangilinan Sports Foundation and SM for supporting the team. — Joey Villar
