MANILA – Hidilyn Diaz became the No. 1 female weightlifter in the world in her category, the International Weightlifting Federation stated in its latest world rankings.
The native of Zamboanga City moved up to the top spot in women’s 53kg after her gold medal win in the 2018 Asian Games in Indonesia in August, the list on the IWF website showed.
Diaz finished 10th in her first Asiad stint in 2006 and sixth in her second appearance in 2010. This year she captured gold for tallying 207 points – 92 points in snatch and 115 in clean and jerk.
But Diaz said the last Asian Games might be the last time she will campaign in the 53kg category as she moves up to the 55kg class starting in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics qualifier.
“Next November, 55 (kg) na ang lalaruin ko,” the 27-year-old Filipina weightlifter said. “Magtse-change na ng weight category so mas malaki ang chance. Hindi na struggle sa pag-lose ng weight.”
“It’s a new category,” she added. “I feel more comfortable with 55kg. (During the) Asian Games, I was confident of gold in the 53kg, and thank God I got my wish. But I have gotten tired in that division.”
Coming in next in the world rankings were Turkmenistan’s Kristina Shermetova and Thailand’s Surodchana Khambao, who placed second and third, respectively, behind Diaz in the Asian Games.
The World Championships in Turkmenistan from Nov. 1 to 10 will be the start of an 18-month qualifying process for Diaz. She wants to represent the Philippines in the Tokyo Olympics before retiring./PN
