KUALA LUMPUR – National weightlifter Mohamad Aniq Kasdan has qualified for the 2024 Paris Olympics.
This comes after he recorded a total lift of 290kg at the International Weightlifting Federation World Cup in Phuket, Thailand today.
Aniq recorded a lift of 125kg in the snatch and 165kg in the clean and jerk.
However his total was only good enough for an eighth place finish.
Li Fabin from China won gold with a total of 312kg, Park Myong-jin of North Korea won silver (301kg) and Ceniza John of The Philippines (300kg) completed the podium.
Aniq’s total in Phuket is 6kg below his best total of 296kg, which he achieved at the International Weightlifting Championships at Qatar in December.
The World Cup event in Phuket is the last to offer qualification points for the Paris Olympics.
On the Olympic qualification rankings, in the 61kg category, Aniq is currently in eighth place with only 12 slots available.
There are no more championships that offer qualification points, which means Aniq has sealed his place in Paris.
Malaysia Weightlifting Federation president Datuk Ayub Rahmat confirmed that Aniq has qualified for Paris.
“Before the event in Phuket we knew that Aniq’s position (on the Olympic qualification rankings) would not be compromised.
“So our target in Phuket was to only improve his ranking and lift total.
“We are pleased that Aniq has qualified for Paris,” said Ayub.
Mohd Hafifi Mansor was the last Malaysian weightlifter to qualify for the Olympics at Rio 2016 in the 69kg weight class. – April 2, 2024