IWF120y/64 – 2021: Hidilyn Diaz makes history for the Philippines

Her tiny morphology (she is 1.58m high) hides a strong woman and a hero in the Philippines: Hidilyn Diaz. Initiated in the sport of weightlifting almost by accident – through one of her cousins, after trying basketball and volleyball – Diaz built up a career that made her become the first-ever Olympic gold medallist for her nation (all sports and genders included), after clinching the Games title at the Tokyo 2020ne Games. Competing in the 55kg category, Diaz lifted 97-127-224 (her personal best at international competitions) and entered the history of the Filipino sport! It was also a rewarding outcome after a very challenging preparation for those Games, including a stranded stay for many months in Malaysia due to the COVID pandemic travel restrictions. This major success at her fourth Olympics followed a silver medal in Rio 2016 (88-112-200, in the 53kg category), and a 10th place in Beijing 2008 (in London 2012, she bombed out in Clean & Jerk). In 2018, she was the best in her category at the Asian Games. Despite a gold medal at the 2022 IWF World Championships in Bogota (COL), she could not do better than her teammate Elreen Ando (both competing in the 59kg category) in the qualification period for the Paris 2024 Olympics, thus missing what would have been her fifth Olympic participation. Born in 1991, Diaz has a business management degree and is presently a member of the IWF Athletes Commission.