7/30/12

Kazakhstan weightlifter Zulfiya Chinshanlo breaks world record

KAI PFAFFENBACH/REUTERS
LONDON—Weightlifter Zulfiya Chinshanlo of Kazakhstan set a clean-and-jerk world record Sunday to win the gold medal in the women’s 53-kilogram category at the London Olympics.
Chinshanlo, 19, lifted 131 kilograms in her second clean-and-jerk attempt, bettering her own world record by 1 kilogram. She finished with a total of 226 kilograms.
Hsu Shu-ching of Taiwan got the silver medal and Cristina Iovu of Moldova the bronze.
Chinshanlo, world champion in 2011, was third after the snatch, but was unstoppable in the clean and jerk. She even loaded 135 kilograms on the bar for her final attempt, but gave up halfway through the lift.
China’s Zhou Jun, a medal favourite, surprisingly made an early departure from the competition after failing her three snatch attempts.