WANA (Dec 23) – Iran’s female weightlifters secured six medals—two golds, one silver, and three bronzes—in the 71kg category at the Asian Youth and Junior Championships held in Qatar.

 

Hanieh Sharifi triumphed in the youth division, earning two gold medals in the clean and jerk (112kg) and total weight (200kg). She also claimed a silver medal in the snatch (88kg), narrowly missing first place to a Kazakh competitor who lifted 89kg.

 

Sharifi broke all three national records for Iranian youth in the 71kg category, surpassing the previous marks by 5kg in the snatch, 19kg in the clean and jerk, and 26kg in total.

 

In the junior division, Reyhaneh Karimi won three bronze medals with lifts of 91kg in the snatch, 120kg in the clean and jerk, and a total of 211kg. Despite her efforts to secure gold in the clean and jerk with a 131kg attempt, she was unsuccessful.

 

Earlier, Maryam Keshtkar, a member of Iran’s national weightlifting team, won a bronze medal in the clean and jerk with a lift of 94kg in the youth division at the Asian Championships. Competing in the 59kg category, Keshtkar failed to lift 67kg in her first two snatch attempts but succeeded on her third try.

 

The strong performance highlights the growing presence of Iranian female athletes in international weightlifting competitions.