Weightlifting

Phạm Thị Hồng Thanh will compete in the IWF Grand Prix 2023 in Qatar. She will vie for a high place in the women’s 72kg class. VNS Photo Quý Lượng

HÀ NỘI Vietnamese athletes are in the hunt for Olympic tickets at the IWF Grand Prix II Weightlifting 2023 in Qatar this week.

A team of the five strongest competitors arrived in Doha and are ready for the tournament, which is scheduled on December 4-14.

Competitions will be held across 10 weight categories for men ranging from U55kg to over-109kg, and as many for women from U45kg to over-87kg.

The Grand Prix is one of the qualifying events for the Paris 2024 Olympics and performances at the Qatar meet will award the lifters competing in the Olympic weight classes with OQR (Olympic Qualification Ranking) points.

The OQR points will be based on the best total results (snatch, clean and jerk) that the athletes manage to lift in qualifying competitions.

The top 10 athletes based on OQR, which will include one highest-ranked athlete per country in each weight category, will obtain Olympic quotas for their national teams after the qualification cycle ends in April 2024.

"All Vietnamese athletes have prepared well with a view of winning an Olympic place in Paris 2024. Weightlifters are really confident and determined so we expect to make our Olympic dream come true," said Nguyễn Huy Hùng of Việt Nam's sports authority.

In Doha, former world champion Trịnh Văn Vinh and Asian winner Nguyễn Trần Anh Tuấn will compete in the men's 61kg. There are a total of eight weightlifters in this category, from China, North Korea, Indonesia, Thailand, and the Philippines.

Trịnh Văn Vinh is expected to earn points for his Olympics' place next summer.

Asian champion Quàng Thị Tâm will be seen in action in the women's 59kg against reigning Asian Games gold medallist Kim Il-gyong of North Korea and silver medallist Shifang Lou of China.

There are top-notch weightlifters in the division from Canada, Venezuela, Italy, Belgium, Ukraine, the Philippines, and Canada.

Young talent Phạm Đình Thi will take part in the women's 49kg. She will go up against nine other weightlifters including those from Canada, Thailand, Uzbekistan, Mexico, Chinese Taipei, Indonesia, and the Philippines.

Asian bronze medallist Phạm Thị Hồng Thanh will vie for a medal in the women's 71kg category.

She will face more than 10 other weightlifters from Canada, China, United States, Italy, the Philippines, and Great Britain.

Lastly, Sarno and Macrohon will take centre stage on December 12 in the women’s 71kg division.

Among them Vinh and Tuấn are the best hopes for Việt Nam, according to Hùng. Tuấn is world No 8 while Vinh places No 10. Meanwhile world No 12 Thanh would be a secret weapon which could 'explode' at the tournament.

After Qatar, athletes will take part in the Olympics' Asian qualification zone in February, 2024 in Uzbekistan, and the 2024 World Cup in April in Thailand.

At the 2024 Paris Olympics, there are 120 official spots in weightlifting (60 men, 60 women) and each country can have no more than three athletes in each weight class. VNS