Paris, Women +81kg: What a show! Li Wenwen lifts China’s fifth gold – and her coach
Li Wenwen lifted her coach rather than the barbell on the way to claiming her second Olympic title in the last – and noisiest – session of weightlifting at Paris 2024. Her win helped China to continue its run of winning at least five weightlifting gold medals at every Games this century.
Li is so dominant in the super-heavyweights, she needed only four attempts to win by 10kg ahead of Park Hyejeong from Korea and Emily Campbell from Great Britain. She declined her third snatch and when she came out for her final attempt she had no intention of making the 174kg lift.
Li Wenwen (CHN) celebrating with her coach
Instead she marched around the platform to celebrate as the clock ran down, encouraging the 4,000 spectators to raise the noise level yet again. Li bowed and waved, then hoisted her coach Wu Meijin from the floor below and on to the stage. That was easy for Li because Wu is a former lightweight athlete who weighs little more than two red discs.
The crowd loved it. They had played their part in making the final session a memorable one, cheering on every athlete. Usually the men’s super-heavyweights bring a competition to a close. For the first time here, the women went last.
Li Wenwen (CHN)
“We’re fun girls,” said Campbell, who performed a cartwheel on the stage after winning her medal. “Li Wenwen’s a character, Park’s a character, I’m a character, so is the girl from Ecuador (Lisseth Ayovi, who was fourth). People relate to that and enjoy that when we’re out there, and we all have a good time.
“I heard the music was pretty good today and everyone was in the party spirit. It’s the last day of the Olympics and we’re having one big last party before it’s all over. I don’t think they’ll be putting the men on last again.”
Park agreed. “We are friends as well as competitors,” she said.
Park Hyejeong (KOR)
Li said she wanted to put Wu in the spotlight “because he’s like a father to me”. Her social media followers had suggested she try it, she said. “I didn’t know if he would be angry or not but I did it anyway.”
She needed Wu’s support in the latter part of the qualifying period because of a serious elbow injury sustained at the World Championships in Saudi Arabia last September. That kept her out of the Asian Games and the next Paris qualifier. Li made a gesture before her second snatch to show the crowd why she was performing within herself, pointing to her right elbow.
“I got a bit nervous today because I’m still stressed about my injuries,” Li said. Her 136-173-309 was her lowest total in a major competition. Even so, she has a combined winning margin in Tokyo and Paris of 47kg.
Emily Campbell (GBR)
Park failed with her final attempt, which would have taken her past the 300kg mark for the first time in international competition, and finished 131-168-299. That gave Korea a medal at last after four disappointments earlier in the week.
Campbell made her first four lifts before two failures, including a final attempt at 174kg that would have taken her past Park into second place. She finished 126-162-288 and is now the second British weightlifter to win medals at two Olympic Games. Louis Martin was the first in the 1960s.
Ayovi was clearly lifted by the crowd’s support as she made five good lifts for a career-best total of 283kg in fourth place. Mary Theisen Lappen from the United States was fifth and Chaidee Duangaksorn Chaidee from Thailand was sixth on her 27th birthday.
By Brian Oliver