IWF120y/48 – 1996: Pablo Lara (CUB) earns his second Olympic medal

If Boxing, Wrestling, Athletics, and Judo lead the Cuban medal chart in the country’s Olympic history, Weightlifting proudly brought eight podium presences to the Caribbean island. It all started at the 1980 Moscow Games, when a joyful Daniel Nuñez became the first Cuban Olympic gold medallist in the sport, winning in the 56kg category (125-150-275). His teammate Alberto Blanco brought a second medal from the Russian capital, a bronze in the 100kg. Twelve years passed by until another successful lifter could celebrate an Olympic success: at the 1992 rendezvous in Barcelona, Pablo Lara earned silver in the 75kg, but could do better in Atlanta 1996, this time (photo) getting the gold (162.5-205-367.5) in his category. He remains up to date the only Cuban lifter with two medals at the Olympics. Beijing 2008 also brought good memories for Cuban weightlifting, after three bronze medals – Yordanis Borrero (men’s 69kg), Jadier Valladares (men’s 85kg), and Yoandry Hernandez (men’s 94kg). The last podium presence at the Games happened at the 2012 London Olympics when Ivan Cambar was third in the men’s 77kg category. At the IWF World Championships, Cuba collected 24 medals (only considering the Total results), and 84 awards if we take into account the podiums for Snatch, Clean & Jerk, and Total. Also at the IWF showcase, these achievements were almost exclusively achieved by men, with one notable exception: Ludia Montero was a silver medallist at the 2019 edition in Pattaya (THA). The Cuban capital, La Havana, hosted the 1973 World Championships, and 50 years later, the 2023 IWF Grand Prix.