This weightlifter made history in the Philippines by becoming the first-ever athlete to win a gold medal Monday at the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games.
Hidilyn Diaz lifted a combined weight of 224 kilograms and earned the highest spot in the women’s 55-kg class event in the Summer Games.
When she realized that she broke the record, the scene was emotional to almost everyone. Diaz broke down and cried, embracing her coach after completing the record-breaking lift. She then clutched her medal and kept pointing to the Philippines flag on her jersey with pride as she stood on the podium, showing that she won first place.
In a statement Monday on Twitter, the Philippines Presidential spokesperson, Harry Roque, wrote to Diaz congratulating her for “bringing pride and glory” to the country.
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He even wrote to the athlete on behalf of the Philippines and said, “The entire Filipino nation is proud of you.”
After already going to the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio, where she achieved a personal record to defeat competition from world record holder Liao Qiuyun of China, Diaz made herself and her entire nation proud by making history.
Before Diaz’s triumph, the Philippines already had 10 Olympic medals. However, three of them were silver, and the seven were bronze, so winning a gold medal was an absolute pride boost for the Asian nation.
Early in the pandemic, when the athlete was on her way to Peru to compete, she got stuck in Malaysia because of government border restrictions. The situation caused Diaz to train by attaching water bottles to a wooden stick, as shown in a video posted on Instagram.
The caption said, “yes, I do this. I carry a bottle of water for my weightlifting training. It’s hard but we survive, still living the dream in my heart.”
