Nestor Colonia of the Philippines in the men’s 67kg weightlifting snatch event at the Southeast Asian Games in Manila on December 3, 2019. Tristan Tamayo/INQUIRER.net
MANILA, Philippines — After finishing near the bottom of his class two years ago, Nestor Colonia this time, was among the top placers in the men’s 67-kilogram weightlifting event of the 30th Southeast Asian Games.
Colonia, a Rio Olympian and a gold medalist in the 2015 Asian Championships, bagged the bronze on Tuesday at Ninoy Aquino Stadium.
The 27-year-old Colonia registered a total lift of 287 kgs after tallying 127 kgs in the snatch and 160 kgs in the clean and jerk.
Deni Deni of Indonesia won the gold medal while Xuan Hoang Dinh of Vietnam snagged the silver.
Colonia finished second to the last when he competed in the 56 kg class in the 2017 Games in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia reportedly due to a knee injury.
He became the latest Filipino to win a medal in weightlifting after John Ceniza (silver), Mary Flor Diaz (bronze), Hidilyn Diaz (gold), and Margaret Colonia (silver).