MANILA, Philippines — Two-time Olympic weightlifter Hidilyn Diaz is fighting for a spot in the national delegation to the Asian Games in Incheon, South Korea.
The 23-year-old from Zamboanga City failed to meet the qualifying standard set by the Asiad task force and would be reevaluated on Aug. 9.
Diaz lifted 102 kilograms in the scratch and 122 kg in the clean and jerk during the 2013 Southeast Asian Games in Burma (Myanmar) for a total of 224, short of the Asian Games bronze-medal qualifying mark of 225.
Task force officials, led by Philippine Sports Commission chair and Asiad chef de mission Richie Garcia and Philippine Olympic Committee chair Tom Carrasco, agreed that Diaz should at least score a total of 225 in the reassessment lift to qualify for the Sept. 19 to Oct. 4 Games.
Competing in the women’s 58 kg, Diaz was the youngest lifter in her category during the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
Diaz is bidding to join Nestor Colonia who already passed the criteria in the men’s 56 kg class. His 293 kg lift in a competition held in China in 2013 was equivalent to the gold medal lift in the 2012 London Olympics.