PATTAYA, Thailand, Sept. 18 (Xinhua) -- DPR Korea's Om Yun Chol won the men's 55kg title by setting a world record of clean and jerk at the 2019 International Weightlifting Federation (IWF) World Championships which kicked off here on Wednesday.
Om, the reigning world champion, faced no threats from his rivals and made five good lifts out of all the six. He won with 128kg in snatch, 166kg in clean and jerk, and 294kg in total.
The 27-year-old broke his own world record of clean and jerk by four kilograms. After failure in his second attempt of 163kg, Om succeeded in his third attempt at 166.
Igor Son from Kazakhstan placed second with 266kg in total, while Saudi Arabia's Mansour Abdulrahim M Al Saleem won the bronze with a total of 265kg.
The opening day also featured the women's 45kg event, with Saziye Erdogan of Turkey winning at 169kg in total. Ludia M. Montero Ramos of Cuba was the runner-up at 167kg, and Indonesian Lisa Setiawati won the bronze on 165kg with a top placing in clean and jerk at 95kg.
The 10-day championships, running through September 27, also serves as qualifiers for the 2020 Tokyo Olympic Games, which doesn't include both men's 55kg and women's 45kg events in its Olympic program.
