Can John Ceniza lift his way to a memorable Olympic debut and continue the Philippines' medal haul in Paris 2024?
It's time to put the spotlight on some extraordinary feat of strength.
John Ceniza will be the first of three Philippine weightlifters who will compete in the Olympic Games Paris 2024 with the hopes of matching or even surpassing the gold medal finish of Hidilyn Diaz back in Tokyo 2020.
The first-time Olympian will compete in the men’s 61-kg event at 9:00 p.m. (PH time) at the South Paris Arena, eyeing to make an instant impact that will set the tone for other Filipino lifters in Elreen Ando and Vanessa Sarno.
Ando will start her campaign in the women’s 59-kg event tomorrow at 9 p.m. (PH Time) while Sarno will compete in the women’s 71-kg event on Saturday August 10 at 1 a.m. (PH Time).
Ceniza earned a spot in Paris 2024 after a solid performance in the 2024 International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Cup in Thailand last April where the pride of Pasil, Cebu City finished fourth with a total lift of 300kg following a 132kg from snatch and 168kg in clean and jerk.
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However, an elite cast of competitors await Ceniza, who needs to overcome the odds and put on an extraordinary performance if he wants to land on the podium in his Olympic debut.
Reigning champion Li Fabin of China is the heavy favorite to defend his crown after reigning supreme in the 2023 Asian Weightlifting Championships, the 19th Asian Games in Hangzhou last year, and the 2024 IWF World Cup where Ceniz finished fourth.
Also present in the field is Tokyo 2020 silver medalist Eko Yuli Irawan of Indonesia and Sergio Massidda of Italy, the 2023 World Weightlifting Championships silver medalist.
Hampton Miller Morris of the United States, Sergio Theerapong Silachai of Thailand, Kaimauri Erati of Kiribati, Ivan Petkov of Bulgaria, Mohamad Aniq Bin Kasdan of Malaysia, Shota Mishvelidze of Georgia, Vinh van Trinh of Vietnam, and Morea Baru of Papua New Guinea round up the 12-man field.