Taiwan's Chen Guan-ling wins 3 golds at World Weightlifting Championships

台灣選手陳冠伶世界舉重錦標賽奪得三金

Chen continues to dominate women's 55 kg class in international weightlifting


TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Taiwanese weightlifter Chen Guan-ling (陳冠伶), 18, won three gold medals at the 2023 International Weightlifting Federation’s (IWF) World Weightlifting Championships (WWC) in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on Thursday (Sept. 7).

Chen, who graduated from New Taipei Municipal AnKang High School in June, won gold in three lift categories in the women's 55 kg class, with 91 kg in the snatch, 112 kg in the clean and jerk, and a combined lift of 203 kg, reported BarBend. Chen is the holder of three Taiwan national records in the women's 55 kg class.

Chen had already made a mark in April at the National Middle School Athletic Games in Hsinchu County, breaking national records with lifts of 86 kg in the snatch, 111 kg in the clean and jerk, and a total lift of 197 kg. In May, at the Asian Weightlifting Championships, she continued to excel by lifting 90 kg in the snatch, 114 kg in the clean and jerk, and a total lift of 204 kg, further improving her performance.

At the Asian Youth and Junior Weightlifting Championships in India on July 30, she also took gold in three lift categories in the women's 55 kg class, with 83 kg in the snatch, 112 kg in the clean and jerk, and a combined lift of 195 kg.

At the WWC on Thursday, Chen competed in the Women's 55 kg A Group, which had 10 participants. She opened her snatch attempts with a weight of 88 kg, the heaviest among all the competitors, and lifted it successfully.

On her second snatch attempt, she lifted 91 kg but failed to lift 93 kg during her third attempt.

After the snatch round, Chen held a 1 kg advantage over Colombia's Rohelys Galvis. In the clean and jerk, she started with 108 kg and successfully lifted it on her first attempt.

However, her second attempt at 112 kg was unsuccessful. In her third and final clean and jerk attempt at 112 kg, she successfully executed the lift, securing a total lift of 203 kg and winning three gold medals.

Chen transitioned from basketball to weightlifting in junior high school. She won her first gold medal at the National Middle School Athletic Games during her third year of junior high, and she continued to dominate in her senior year, winning gold medals for four consecutive years at the National Middle School Athletic Games.