Southeast Asian Games – Weightlifting – Olympic Taekwondo Hall, Phnom Penh, Cambodia – May 15, 2023 Philippines’ Vanessa Palomar Sarno reacts during the women’s – 71kg REUTERS/Cindy Liu
PHNOM PEHN—Nobody came close to knocking off Vanessa Sarno from her perch.
The former Asian champion removed the excitement and drama in the weightlifting competition on Monday, hardly breaking a sweat in retaining her women’s 71kg crown at the 32nd Southeast Asian Games.
Sarno, last year’s champion in Hanoi, Vietnam, erased her own standard of 104kg in the Games with a 105 effort in the snatch.
The 19-year-old from Tagbilaran, Bohol later on attempted once in the clean and jerk, hoisting 120kg that ultimately clinched her the title.
Vanessa Sarno retains 71kg title #SEAGames2023 pic.twitter.com/dBVa3KdVMB
— June Navarro (@junavINQ) May 15, 2023
She totalled 225, a far cry from silver medalist Thipwara Chontavin of Thailand (208) and third-placer Restu Anggi of Indonesia (206).
“I didn’t try to break my record in the clean and jerk because of my left knee. It got strained after the Asian championships,” said Sarno, who brought home three silvers from the Asian Weightlifting Championships recently in Jinju, Korea.
Sarno’s victory is the second for the Philippine weightlifting team after Elreen Ando ruled the women’s 59kg on Sunday.