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Hidilyn Diaz is looking to follow up her Tokyo Olympic gold medal with a victory at the world championships later this year. —FRANCIS TJ OCHOA
Even harder, Hidilyn Diaz-Naranjo is an Olympic gold medalist.
The Filipino weightlifting celebrity never said anything like that.
“I like to be challenged. This year I will be more disciplined and determined to win back-to-back gold medals at the Olympics for our country,” said Diaz-Naranjo, who will go up to 59 kilograms for women to bid for gold twice.
The weight class means exploring uncharted territory for the fourth Olympian, who captured the country’s first gold medal in Summer Olympic history when she dominated the 55 kg class at the 2021 Tokyo Olympics. , was removed from the Paris 2024 Olympic program, and the Filipino star decided to look for an encore.
physical muscles
He admits that with these moves, he needs to develop a muscular physique that can carry more power.
“I need to focus more during training to meet 59 kg. I expect that training will be more difficult when I work on my diet. Rest is also important to prevent injuries,” said Diaz-Naranjo.
The 31-year-old from Zamboanga City will not be the only one.
Diaz-Naranjo will be guided by his wife-head trainer Julius Naranjo every step along with the rest of the Team HD-sports psychologist Karen Trinidad, nutritionist Jeanette Aro and assistant Rowel Garcia.
If there’s one thing he can take advantage of, it’s the fact that Diaz-Naranjo has seen all the possible competition in Paris.
“I saw how he played in the world championships, his technique and how to prepare himself. I believe he can do it,” said Diaz-Naranjo, who finally regained the crown missing from his collection by winning the 55 kg division at the International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Championships ) in Colombia.
top competitor
By “follow,” Diaz-Naranjo means that he will try to beat the opposition starting in the Olympic qualifiers until Paris.
World champion Luo Xiaomin of China (wrestling event) and Yenny Alvarez of Colombia (clean and jerk) are the toughest competitors at 59 kg. Chinese-Taipei’s Kou Hsing-chun and Canada’s Maude Charron, the 64 kg Olympic champion, are also medal contenders.
The Philippine lifting icon will have to go through four more qualifying tournaments before the Paris Olympics with two mandatory events – the 2023 IWF World Championships in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, from September 2 to 17 and the 2024 IWF World Cup.
They already have one tournament in their pocket with the Colombian world championship and are looking forward to three more encounters next year, including the Saudi world.
“I will not come here just to compete. My goal is to be the best player in the tournament,” said Diaz-Naranjo, who visited Philippine Sports Commission Chairman Richard Bachmann earlier this week.
“That will be my mindset until I get to Paris.”
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