Lifter's world mark comes up short

JAKARTA (JP): Despite setting a new world junior record, Thai lifter Parksupho Ahinya still finished in second place yesterday.

She lifted 117.5 kg in the 64 kg clean and jerk, 10.0 kg more than Russian Svetlana Habirova in the 1996 World Weight Lifting Championship in Warsaw.

Indonesia's Sriyani had snatched 77.5 kg for the first record on Sunday.

Ahinya, compatriot Thongsuk Pawina and Indonesia's male lifter I Nyoman Sudarma also set five Games records yesterday in 64 kg, 70 kg and 83 kg respectively.

But Ahinya's total of 207.5 kg was 5.0 kg less than Sriyani.

Ahinya criticized the local spectators for jeering the Thai lifters when they took the stage.

"If the spectators were not making too much noise and if the electricity had not broken down, I would have made my third effort in the clean and jerk to lift 122.5 kgs," she told The Jakarta Post.

A blackout lasting 15 minutes meant the clean and jerk category and medal ceremony were conducted in dim light.

Sriyani blamed the power outage for her failure to lift 120.0 kg on her final two attempts in clean and jerk.

"It was so dark I could hardly see my feet. I mean, I couldn't gauge the distance between my two legs in the dark," she told the Post.

Indonesian coach Imron Rosadi said the glare of photographers' flashbulbs in the dark was distracting and harmful to the lifters' eyes.

Despite the outage, Sriyani said: "Ahinya broke the record, but I got the gold".

In the women's 70 kg category, Thailand's Pawina broke the Games record with a 100.0 kg snatch lift, 2.5 kg more than Indonesia's Ami Asun Budiono's score in Chiang Mai. Her total of 220.0 kg was sufficient for gold.

Budiono was second, followed by Vietnam's Hoang Thi Kim.

Sudarma won the gold and set a Games record in his division with a total score of 322.5 kg (145.0 kg snatch, 177.5 kg clean and jerk).

"I'm not very happy, I should have done better," he said.

In the men's 76 kg, Vietnam's Nguyen Thanh came out on top with 135.0 kg in the snatch and 172.5 kgs in the clean and jerk for a total 307.5 kg. Indonesia's Sutrisno was second and Thailand's Moonmongkol Chaleampol third. (cst)