VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Indonesian weightlifter Eko Yuli Irawan took home a gold medal from the World Weightlifting Championships held in Fuzhou, capital of China`s Fujian province, from February 22 to 27.

"Eko won a gold and two silver medals, while other (Indonesian) weightlifter, Deni, secured a silver and two bronze medals," chief of development and achievement of All Indonesia Weightlifting, Bodybuilding and Powerlifting Association (PABBSI) Alamsyah said in a short message text on Saturday.

Eko, who competed in the men`s 61 kilograms lifted 297 kilograms in total, consisting of 136 kilograms in snatch and 161 kilograms in clean and jerk.

The gold medal will pave the way for his attempt to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic 2020, Dirja Wihardja, coach of the association`s national training center, said.

"The result will maintain his position as the world`s eighth seed. But he still has to take part in five to six other championships to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic 2020," Dirja said.

Eko will have a greater chance to qualify for the Tokyo Olympic if he secures a gold medal in the Asian Championships 2019 to be held in Ningho, China, from April 18 to 22.

"The World Championships 2019 in Fuzhou is a tournament with a silver category, while the Asian Championships in Ningbo is a tournament with a gold category," he said.

In the 61 kilograms, Deni won a bronze medal with a total lift of 305 kilograms, consisting of 135 kilograms in snatch and 170 kilograms in clean and jerk.

The silver medal went to Vietnamese weightlifter Thach Kim Tuan who lifted 295 kilograms in total. Host weightlifter Wang Hao won a bronze medal with a total lift of 286 kilograms.

In the 67 kilograms, Deni won a bronze medal by lifting 305 kilograms in total consisting of 135 kilograms in snatch and 170 kilograms in clean and jerk.

The gold medal went to Pak Jong Ju of North Korea who managed to lift 318 kilograms in total, while Huang Minhao of China secured a silver medal with a total lift of 314 kilograms.