More Sports
Thailand, Indonesia win first London medals, both in weightlifting
Thailand's Pimsiri Sirikaew. Reuters
Southeast Asian neighbors Thailand and Indonesia on Monday won their first medals at the 2012 London Olympics in the weightlifting competition.
Pimsiri Sirikaew finished second in the 58-kg women’s competition, the same category as Filipino flag-bearer Hidilyn Diaz, to annex the silver medal. Sirikaew lifted 100-kg in the snatch and 136-kg in the catch-and-jerk for an aggregate of 136-kg. Li Xueying of China set a new Olympic record in snatch (108) and total weight lifted (248) to win the gold.
Eko Yuli Irawan, meanwhile, finished tied for second with Colombia’s Oscar Figueroa in the men’s 62-kg competition with a total weight of 317-kg, but brought home the bronze because of higher body weight. North Korea’s Kim Un-Guk won the gold medal after shattering the world record with total weight lifted of 327-kg.
Indonesia and Thailand are traditional sporting powers in the ASEAN region, finishing first and second, respectively, in the medal tally in the 2011 Southeast Asian Games.
