PETALING JAYA – National weightlifter Mohammad Aniq Kasdan has set himself a lofty target of bagging a medal in his Olympic debut in July.
To achieve that, he knows his total lift has to be at least over 300kg based on the performance of medal winners at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics and International Weightlifting Federation World Cup in Phuket, Thailand early last month.
Aniq, who is set to compete in the men’s 61kg category, holds the national record with a total lift of 296kg (126kg in snatch and 170kg in clean and jerk).
The 21-year-old said his high-intensity training is now at 90% as he continues to gear up for Paris 2024.
“I am feeling nervous as (Paris) will be the biggest stage of all for me. So, I have to be prepared mentally.
“Everyone who competes at the Olympics wants to win…better for me to set such a lofty target so that I will train more diligently.
“For now, I can lift up to 300kg, but to bag a medal I need to target around 305kg,” he said during the gathering between chef de mission Datuk Hamidin Mohd Amin and the Olympic-bound athletes here today.
Aniq said he will be training for a month from early June in Rompin, Pahang before heading to Turkiye for a training camp to acclimatise to the weather conditions in Europe before flying to Paris for the Olympics.
Based on Tokyo 2020 results, Aniq has the chance to land a medal as China’s Li Fabin took gold with a total lift of 313kg, while Eko Yuli Irawan of Indonesia lifted 302kg for silver and Igor Son of Kazakhstan lifted 294kg for bronze.
In last month’s World Cup, Li won the 61kg category with a total lift of 312kg, American Hampton Morris (303kg) took silver and North Korea’s Pak Myong Jin (201kg) settled for bronze. Aniq (290kg) could only finish eighth.
Mohd Hafifi Mansor was the last Malaysian weightlifter to have qualified for the Olympics when he competed in the 2016 Rio edition in the 69kg category. – May 27, 2024