Turkmen athlete Gaigysyz Toraev won two bronze medals in the clean and jerk and total weightlifting events at the Asian Weightlifting Championships held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan. Toraev, a third-year student of the Turkmen State Institute of Physical Culture and Sports, achieved this success in the non-Olympic weight category up to 81 kg, where 10 athletes competed for medals.

In the total of the two events, Gaigysyz Toraev scored a total of 337 kg (148 kg in the snatch and 189 kg in the clean and jerk), which is 6 kg less than his personal best result shown at the World Championships in Riyadh (Saudi Arabia), in September, where he won a bronze medal in the clean and jerk (193 kg) and finished 6th in the total (343 kg).

Therefore, in the final standings, our compatriot lagged behind the second-place, Alexander Uvarov (Kazakhstan), bronze medalist of the XIX Asian Summer Games in Hangzhou (China), by 6 kg, who lifted a total of 343 kg (153 + 190), and 32 kg behind Ri Chong Song from North Korea, the Asian champion, 2 records holder in the snatch and total at the Asian Games in Hangzhou, champion of the Asian Games in Hangzhou and the IWF Grand Prix II in Doha (Qatar), who lifted a total of 369 kg (169 + 200).

Gaigysyz, who will turn 21 on April 11, has become a medalist at major competitions before. Last June, at the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) Grand Prix, Olympic Qualifying Event held in Havana, Cuba, he won three silver medals in individual exercises and the total (319 kg). In July, at the Asian Junior Championships held in New Delhi, India, he won gold in the clean and jerk (178 kg) and two silver medals in the snatch (147 kg) and total (325 kg).

Master of Sports Gaigysyz Toraev began training in weightlifting in Sakarchage etrap under the coach Shatlyk Durdyklychev. Currently, he is honing his skills under the guidance of Mansur Rejepov, the head coach of the Turkmenistan national team. Turkmenistan is represented by 12 athletes (7 men and 5 women) at the Asian Championships.

Yulduz Jumabaeva, the 2018 world champion in the non-Olympic weight category up to 45 kg, finished just shy of a bronze medal in the 55 kg weight category, where 4 female athletes competed. She lifted a total of 174 kg (77 kg in the snatch and 97 kg in the clean and jerk), falling short by 18 kg of the bronze medalist Nigora Abdullaeva from Uzbekistan, who lifted a total of 192 kg (86 in the snatch and 106 kg in the clean and jerk). The Asian champion in this weight category was Kang Hyong Gyong from North Korea, with a total of 227 kg (104 + 123 kg). The silver medal went to Chen Guan-Ling from Taiwan, who lifted a total of 204 kg (89 + 115 kg).

Another one of our athletes, Kristina Shermetova, finished in fifth place in the 59 kg weight category with a total of 195 kg (85 kg in the snatch and 110 kg in the clean and jerk). There were 11 participants from 10 countries in this weight category. The champion in this weight category was Kim Il-Gyong from North Korea, with a total of 225 kg (103 kg in the snatch and 122 kg in the clean and jerk). Elreen Ann Ando from the Philippines took second place with a total of 213 kg (93 kg in the snatch and 120 kg in the clean and jerk). Natasya Beteyob from Indonesia completed the podium with a total of 212 kg (96 kg in the snatch and 116 kg in the clean and jerk).

The Asian Championships, in which weightlifters from 34 countries compete for medals in ten weight categories among men and women, will conclude on February 10.