MANILA – Filipina powerlifter Veronica Ompod notched four gold medals in the 2021 World Classic Powerlifting Championships in Halmstad, Sweden, on Monday (Tuesday in the Philippines).
Ompod, a native of Matalom, Leyte, lifted a total of 225 kilograms in the 43-kilogram women’s junior division, winning gold medals in the squat, bench press, deadlift, and total weight.
Ompod unexpectedly cruised to the gold medal round, according to the Powerlifting Association of the Philippines, as her competitors “failed to make the weight.”
“Regardless, Veronica was the top seed to win the gold anyway over all her competitors, based on the official nominations,” the group wrote on its Facebook account.
On the other hand, Leyte’s Jane Erasmo bagged four bronze medals in the -47kg women’s sub-junior division in her first-ever international competition.
Erasmo finished barely behind silver medalist Petrenko Tetiana of Ukraine, with the latter edging the former in the bench press and total lift. Russia’s Alina Udaltsova easily won the gold medal in the weight class.
“Veronica and Jane arrived in Halmstad just hours before their weigh-in and competition, depriving them of proper rest,” the federation said. “But the two young lifters still managed to put up a good performance.”
Meanwhile, Agustin Lorenzo added a silver medal to Team Philippines’ collection by finishing second in the men’s -74 sub-junior event.
Lorenzo benched 147.5kg, the second-best mark in the weight class, only behind Croatia’s Teo Kalogjera’s world record lift.
He finished fourth overall in the 170-kg weight class with a total lift of 572.5 kg./PN
