China’s weightlifter showcases one-legged ‘flamingo’ lift before winning Olympic gold

July 26, 2021

China’s Li Fabin showcased his signature move and broke two Olympic records when he won the gold medal for weightlifting on Sunday.

One-legged stunt: The 28-year-old Chinese weightlifter pulled off a one-of-a-kind lift that had him momentarily standing on just one leg during his opening clean and jerk lift in the men’s 61-kilogram (around 134 pounds) category, reported the Associated Press.

During his lift of 166 kilograms (366 pounds), Li kept his left foot planted while lifting his right leg and slightly extending it forward in the air.
The lift, which the press calls as the ”flamingo,” is a technique that Li has performed in previous competitions.
According to the athlete, the move allows him to adjust his balance should anything go wrong as he starts lifting.
“It was a momentary mistake, I almost lost my balance, but I had been working on this scenario in training,” Li was quoted by Reuters as saying after the event.
Li warned others against trying it because it poses a “serious risk of injury.” “I have a very strong core, and I have really worked hard on that move,” he said.

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Record breaker: Even more impressive than his balancing stance was his record-breaking lifts in the clean and jerk and total categories, lifting 172 kilograms (379 pounds) and 313 kilograms (690 pounds), respectively.

Li’s performance has allowed the Chinese team to win three gold medals in three events in Tokyo Olympic weightlifting.
Chen Lijun took the second gold for China in the 67-kilogram (147.71 pounds) category, while Hou Zhihui added China’s third gold medal after competing in women’s 49-kilogram (108 pounds) weightlifting.
By lifting 210 kilograms (463 pounds) in her category, Hou also set new Olympic records in the snatch, clean and jerk, and overall total.
Meanwhile, Liao Qiuyun took only silver in the 55-kilogram category behind the Philippines’ Hidilyn Diaz, who set a new Olympic record with a combined weight of 224 kilograms (493 pounds).

Featured Image via WOLF WEIGHTLIFTING

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