No stranger to heavy lifting, Diaz deals with other weighty issues

Hidilyn Diaz. INQUIRER PHOTO/ Sherwin Vardeleon

Right now, the weightier things that Hidilyn Diaz needs to take care of have nothing to do with barbells.

“It’s difficult mentally when you are not able to compete in a tournament for more than a year,” the 30-year-old Asian Games weightlifting champion said on Monday during Kick-Start Coffee’s Brewed Awakening online show. “I need to condition myself mentally and maintain my weight. These are the factors that concern me.’’

Diaz, who was interviewed via streaming from Malaysia, where she has set up her training camp, is currently awaiting the final qualifying tournament to formalize her fourth straight Olympic appearance.

It looks like the only hurdle left for the 2016 Olympics silver medalist before she can claim a spot alongside world champion gymnast Carlos Yulo, multiple Europe gold-winning pole vaulter EJ Obiena and champion boxers Eumir Marcial and Irish Magno in the Philippine delegation to this year’s rescheduled Olympics.

She doesn’t even have to perform well in the qualifying tournament, the Asian championships tentatively scheduled in Tashkent, Uzbekistan.

“I just need to get my right body weight and show up in the Asian championships to qualify,” said Diaz.

Diaz has already participated in four of the five tournaments required by the International Weightlifting Federation as a passport to Tokyo. A cancellation of the tournament, which has already previously happened, might be a bit of a worry for the 55-kilogram gold medalist of the Roma 2020 World Cup.

“I hope the tournament pushes through. It will also serve as a tuneup for me going into the Olympics,” she said.

Diaz, however, is confident she can ride her world ranking to the Olympics. The Filipino heroine is currently ranked No. 2 in her weight class and like a lot of Olympic disciplines, weightlifting awards outright berths to the top athletes of its various weight divisions.

Meanwhile, Diaz said she continues to train in earnest, putting particular focus on keeping her weight in check. INQ